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Rising Crime Wave: IGP Issues AIGs Marching Orders
The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr Mohammed Abubakar, yesterday in Abuja charged Assistant Inspectors General of Police in charge of Zonal Commands to redouble efforts in fighting rising crime.
Speaking at a meeting with the AIGs, Abubakar stressed the need to redouble efforts to tackle the rising wave of crime and criminality across the country.
“I urge you to pay more attention to the incidences of rising crime wave across the
country; daily situation reports bear testimony to this phenomenon,’’ he said before they went into a closed-door session.
“In spite of the emergency rule in Adawawa, Borno and Yobe, the insurgents still inflict untold hardship on peace-loving residents of these states.
“The explosion in Sabon-Gari area of Kano metropolis on July 29, 2013 is another painful reminder that the war against terrorism is not yet over.
“I hasten to add that you must redouble your efforts and restructure the existing crime-fighting architecture at your disposal to ensure that the zones, commands and formations under your watch are kept secured,’’he said.
Abubakar directed the AIGs to collaborate with sister security agencies in their jurisdictions in the war against crime, noting that security was multi-tasking in nature and that a single security agency could not handle it alone.
“In the South-East and South-South zones, armed robbery, kidnapping and other violent crimes such as murder, assassination and political upheavals seem to be the order of the day.
“Hardly does a day pass by without one hearing tales of woes, of residents being robbed or kidnapped or of assassination of a political rival.
“I, therefore, charge you to sit up and tackle these menaces and ensure that the ordinary citizens get reprieve from those hell-bent on inflicting anguish and pain on them,’’ he said.
Abubakar urged them to mobilise men under their respective commands to embark on robust intelligence gathering and constant patrol to check crime and insecurity across the country.
“The challenges may be daunting but the task of making Nigeria crime-free is a mandate we must pursue with all the resources at our disposal,’’ he said.
On the forthcoming Sallah celebration and the elections in Anambra and Ekiti states, he enjoined the officers to put in place adequate security measures for them to be hitch-free.
He said the essence of the meeting was to review the security situation in the country over the last three months with view to adopting strategies to confront them.
