Rivers State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has raised alarm over purported hijack of the ongoing composition of the community policing groups by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. The assertion was made by the spokesman of the Rivers APC, Ogbonna Nwuke, who said via a press statement released today, that the party has uncovered plots by some Divisional Police Officers to engage members of the Neighborhood Watch Scheme set up by the Nyesom Wike led administration, against the directives of the Inspector General of Police, who has ordered the participation of all stakeholders in the formation of the community policing groups.
The statement reads: Following concerns raised by Nigerians over rising cases of instability and spiraling crime in society, the Police Force recently issued guidelines which would pave the way for the formation of legitimate community policing groups. The move is anchored on the premise that these community policing organs would depend on the knowledge of the environment in which such operatives are born in helping the police with the task of combating crime.
Against this backdrop, the Police High Command in Abuja has fallen back on State Commissioners of Police, and charged them with the onerous responsibility of reaching out to stakeholders within the jurisdiction of their Commands in order to execute the idea of community policing. In their wisdom, State Commissioners of Police have equally assigned that schedule of duty to Divisional Police Officers, DPOs, who operate in the various Local Government Areas. We applaud the Police Force for acceding to the request of concerned Nigerians who believe that the establishment of community policing outfits would strengthen the nation’s security architecture.
We believe that in contemplating the idea of community policing, it was never the intentment of the Force to encourage the politicization of the process. Our attention has been drawn to hue and cries that are emanating from the various Local Government Areas of Rivers State over the handling of the exercise by Divisional Police Officers. We have heard that the DPOs who ought to initiate broad based conversations on the way forward are seemingly working with Local Government Council Chairmen in their effort in setting up community policing organs.
We are not aware that the DPOs have, for purposes of guaranteeing fairness and transparency called meetings across board to ensure that best practices are strictly followed. As a result, we have heard that there is a plot by some persons at large to use members of the discredited Neighbourhood Watch Scheme set up by the Rivers State Government to populate such bodies which would be charged with the task of policing the communities. It is for this reason that we are forced to bring the issue of the implementation of the said scheme to the attention of the Rivers State Commissioner of Police. A letter of protest to this effect has been forwarded by the Isaac Ogbobula led Caretaker Committee to the Police over this matter.
The State Commissioner of Police may not know it, but some of the Divisional Police Officers are purportedly under the payroll of the PDP controlled State Government. And information reaching us suggest that they are conniving to undermine the process. We acknowledge that the sole aim of the community policing strategy enunciated by the Police is based on fighting crime, and not on fighting political opponents under whatever guise. Furthermore, the police are interested in gathering strong intelligence and having able hands who would be required to keep the people safe. The consequences of dressing up thugs and party sympathizers in uniform or agbada would be catastrophic.
Accordingly, we request that the State Commissioner of Police who by now knows the nature of Rivers society should halt the exercise. We also think that the Police authorities in Rivers State should take further steps while there is still time to verify how DPOs are executing the instructions that they have received from their superiors. Where the DPOs have not acted in line with the expectations of the Force, we hope that the Rivers State Police would ensure strict compliance with the orders of the Inspector General of Police. We are convinced that the Rivers State Police Commissioner is a gentleman and a no nonsense police officer. His antecedents speak for him. It is our conviction that he would not allow the narrow parochial interests of a few bad apples and their political collaborators to endanger the implementation of a process which should admit apolitical and decent minded persons in order to succeed.
