Security Of Nigeria, A Duty For All Citizens – Minister Of State For Police Affairs
The Minister of State for Police Affairs, Hon. Imaam Sulaiman-Ibrahim, has called on Nigerians to take active involvement in ensuring the security and protection of the country, stating that it is the duty for all to do so.
The Minister made the call in her speech at the Citizens Townhall Engagement on Strengthening Policing in Nigeria with the theme “Community Policing: Building A Safer Nigeria Together,” held in Lagos on Monday, December 11, 2023.
While emphasizing the need to build a safer nation, she said it is the responsibility of all citizens, young or old, to see the issue of security and protection of the nation as part of their duties.
She said the town hall security meeting is aimed at strengthening the community policing strategy and capacity in the country geared towards the upliftment of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, especially in the area of security.
Hon. Imaam Sulaiman-Ibrahim expressed optimism that the Townhall meeting on strengthening Community Policing in Nigeria will yield several significant outcomes, especially in enhancing collaboration among stakeholders that will lead to actionable policy insights, strengthen public trust in policing efforts, and the development of concrete strategies for community policing, which, according to her, are all in alignment with the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Police Transformation Agenda.
She enjoined all Nigerians to identify with this initiative by taking an active part in community policing in their various communities.
On the Townhall Meeting and its objectives, the Hon. Minister of State for Police Affairs said the meeting “aims to provide a platform for direct engagement between the Ministry of Police Affairs, citizens and other critical policing stakeholders across Nigeria to foster a transparent dialogue, share insights on the ongoing police reform, and gather valuable feedbacks from citizens on strengthening the policing in general but also specific to a community policing strategy.”
Other objectives of the Townhall meeting, according to the Ministers, is to “create a platform for citizens to express concerns, ask questions, and provide valuable feedbacks on policing issues affecting their communities; collect suggestions, concerns, and recommendation to inform further policy decisions and operational strategies.”
As an objective, she said the Townhall meeting will “promote active community participation in the development and implementation of policing initiatives, emphasizing the importance of collaboration as well as establish and document successful community policing initiatives that can serve as a learning point for other communities.”
The Governor of Lagos State, His Excellency, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, promised Lagos State’s commitment to embracing the concept of community policing initiative for the protection of lives and properties of the residents of the state.
“For us in Lagos State, we will continue to embrace community policing concept to effectively address the security issues in the state, especially in the area of armed robbery, the Governor said.
According to him, Lagos State will continue to showcase its successful community policing initiatives, providing examples for other states in the country to emulate and also encouraging the sharing of the best practices in community policing.
While calling on the citizens to embrace community policing in their various localities, the Governor urged for collaboration between the citizens and the agencies of government responsible for protecting the nation, noting that “it is only when we work together that we can achieve our goals.”
Earlier in his opening remarks at the event, Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, emphasized the need for the protection of the lives and properties of the citizens, noting that this can only be achieved when the police and the citizens come together and work for the security of the nation.
He disclosed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as part of his administration’s desire to ensure effective policing in Nigeria, has approved the yearly recruitment of men and women into the Nigerian Police Force from 10,000 to 30,000.
While calling on all Nigerians to support the concept of Community Policing for a safer Nigeria, the IGP said the concept, apart from fostering the public-police relationship, will also promote active community participation in the development and implementation of policing initiatives especially that of creating awareness on the issues of security in the country.
“When you give out information, when you speak out when you see people engaging in activities that will jeopardize or threaten the security of the people or your community it will help the police to live up to their responsibility. The security of our communities is the duty of all citizens of that community. Therefore, we need your collective support and cooperation for this initiative to succed” the IGP appealed.
