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FG To Recruit 40,000 Policemen For Community Policing -IGP

The Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, says the Federal Government is to recruit 40,000 Community Police Constables across the federation as part of the measures to strengthen community policing in the country.
Adamu said this, yesterday, in Enugu during the launch of the Police Campaign Against Cultism and Other Vices (POCACOV).
He said: “Each of the 774 council areas in the country will have a minimum of 50 constables to strengthen security at the local levels.
“It will also involve engaging community-based organisations, groups and institutions to see that it works for the betterment of all.’’
The I-G, represented by the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone 9, Mr Baba Tijini, said that the adoption of POCACOV as a national programme was in line with Federal Government’s community policing agenda.
He said that the idea of community policing was to involve all stakeholders in the onerous task of crime reduction in Nigeria.
He said that the police would sensitise members of the public to join the fight against crime and criminality at the community level.
The I-G said: “I want all Nigerians to key into this programme for the overall reduction of crime in all our communities in the country.
“We want to engage and work together with local citizens to easily identify security threats and proffer local solutions to them”.
Earlier, the General Officer Commanding 82 Division of the Nigerian Army, Maj.-Gen. Abubakar Maikobi, who spoke on behalf of service chiefs in the state, assured the I-G of the continuous support of the security agencies.
Maikobi, represented by the 82 Division Garrison Commander, Brig.-Gen. Sylvester Oloyede, said that the existing synergy among the security agencies in Enugu state and other parts of the country had continued to yield positive results.
“The I-G should be assured that he will get our unwavering support towards this campaign to ensure that it succeeds,’’ he said.
In a message, Team Leader, Nigeria Policing Programme (NPP), Mrs Kemi Okenyodo, said that the launch of POCACOV was an illustration of the commitment of the police to fully adopt community policing as a strategy in the country.
Okenyodo described the joint identification of societal problems and cross-sectorial consultation to achieve local solutions to local problems as the key message from the event to all Nigerians.
The Chairman of the occasion and Chairman of Enugu State Traditional Rulers’ Council, Igwe Lawrance Agubuzu, thanked the I-G for involving everyone and taking the fight against cultism and crime to the community level.
According to Agubuzu, POCACOV is a bottom-up approach meant to tackle the root cause of most crimes.
“We also have to look inwards and ensure that those that supply or sell hard drugs to children in the communities are apprehended,’’ he said.
In an address of welcome, Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi lauded the I-G for choosing Enugu for the launch of the campaign meant to reform the life-style of the nation’s future leaders.
Ugwuanyi, represented by the state Head of Service, Mr Chidi Ezema, extolled the qualities of the I-G, citing his achievements in crime prevention as commissioner of police in the state.
He said, “It was during your time as commissioner of police here that POCACOV was initiated by you and it made the state to be ranked as the most peaceful in the country.
“The state government will continue to support the activities of the police to ensure that the state remains safe and secure while protecting the future of our children.”
The governor commended the efforts of the police and other security agencies for stemming insecurity in the state.
He specifically thanked the security agencies for the rescue of a permanent secretary in the state from the hands of his abductors unhurt.
Highlights of the event were the inauguration of the POCACOV ambassadors, comprising celebrities from the state, and POCACOV NYSC Community Development Service group.
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I’m Committed To Community Dev – Ajinwo
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RSG Tasks Rural Dwellers On RAAMP …As Sensitization Team Visits Akulga, Degema, Three Others

Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyingi Brown, has called on rural communities in the State to embrace the Rural Access and Agricultural marketing project (RAAMP) with a view to improving their living conditions.
This follows the ongoing sensitization campaign by the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) visits to Degema, Abonnema, Afam headquarters of Degema, Akuku Toru and Oyigbo Etche and Omuma local government areas respectively.
Dr Brown who was represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties in her office, Mrs Dein Akpanah, said RAAMP was initiated by the Federal Government and World Bank to economically empower rural dwellers.s
She said the World Bank understands the plights of rural farmers and traders in the State, and therefore came up with the programme to address them.
According to her, RAAMP will improve the conditions of farmers, traders and fishermen, and therefore, behoves on every rural communities in the State to embrace the programme.
The Head of Service also said the programme would support the youths to be gainfully employed while bridges and roads will be built to link farms and fishing settlements.
Also speaking, the State project coordinator, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the programme has the potential of creating millionaires among farmers and fishermen in the State.
Kpakol who was represented by Engr. Sam Tombari, said RAAMP would help farmers and fishermen to preserve their produce.
According to him, the project will build cold rooms and Silos for preservation of crops and fishes while access roads will also be created to link farmers and fishermen to the market.
He, however, warned them against any act that will lead to the suspension of the projects by the World Bank.
Kpakol particularly warned against acts such as kidnapping, marching ground, gender based violence and child labour, adding that such acts if they occur may lead to the cancellation of the project by the World Bank.
During the visit to Oyigbo local government area, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the team was there to let them know how they will benefit from the Raamp.
The coordinator who was personally at Oyigbo said the World Bank introduced the project to check food insecurity in the State.
He said already 19 states in Nigeria are already benefitting from the project and called on them to embrace the project.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the three local government areas have commended the World Bank for including their areas in the project.
They, however, complained over the incessant attacks by pirates on their waterways.
At Degema, King Agolia of Ke kingdom said land was a major problem in the kingdom.
King Agolia represented by High Chief Alpheus Damiebi said many indigenes of the kingdom are willing to go into farming but are handicapped by lack of land.
Also at Degema, the representative of the Omu Onyam Ekeim of Usokun Degema kingdom, Osoabo Isaac, said Degema has embraced the programme but needed more information on the implementation of the programme.
Similarly, while High Chief Precious Abadi advised that the project should not be narrowed to only crop farming, a community women leader, Mrs Orikinge Eremabo Otto, called for the construction of cold rooms in all fishing settlements in the area.
At Abonnema, Mr Diamond Kio linked the problem of the area to incessant piracy along waterways.
He also expressed fears over the possibility of the project being hijacked by politicians.
Also at Abonnema, a stakeholder, Ikiriko Kelvin, called on the World Bank to design an agricultural project that will suit the riverine environment, while at Oyigbo, HRH Eze Boniface Akawo expressed satisfaction with the project.
John Bibor
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Senate Replaces Natasha As Committee Chairman

The political mudslinging between the Senate leadership and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan continued yesterday as the Senate named Senator Aniekan Bassey as the new Chairman of the Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the appointment during yesterday’s plenary, confirming Bassey’s replacement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who is currently on suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs Committee in February after she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content during a minor reshuffle.
Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District.
Although no reason was given for her removal yesterday, the change is believed to be connected to her unresolved suspension.
In May, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the Senate.
However, the Senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment.
Akpoti-Uduaghan who represents Kogi Central, has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.
In a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was awaiting the Certified True Copy of the judgment before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for institutional process.
Although the Federal High Court described her suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional”, a legal opinion dated July 5 and attributed to the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), argued that the ruling lacked any binding directive to enforce her reinstatement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of only three female senators in the current assembly, said the continued delay in allowing her return was not only a denial of her mandate but also a blow to democratic representation.
“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central, it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she said.
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