Obasanjo seeks support for police to tackle crimes

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NIGERIA: EX-PRESIDENT Olusegun Obasanjo has urged Nigerians to support the police to ensure a crime-free society.

Obasanjo said on Monday that policemen – in carrying out their jobs – are really facing a great task, particularly in fighting crimes and criminals.

To help the police out, the former President enjoined citizens, especially the rich, to offer the necessary assistance to these men and women in uniform.

Obasanjo made the plea at the maiden meeting of the Ogun State Chapter of the Eminent Peoples’ Forum (EPF) and launch of Police Complaint Rapid Response Unit and “Change Begins with Me” campaign.

The event was held at the June 12 Cultural Centre, Kuto in Abeokuta, the state capital.
The former President, who stated that EPF was a good initiative by the Inspector-General of the Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, stressed that policing was a collective responsibility of all in the society.
He said: “This initiative is a very good one. The work of policing our community, local government, state and country is not the work of the police alone; it is for all of us.”

“Let us all engage in helping the police to police our communities.  Police have a very difficult task,” the former President added.
He further said: “If you want to go and get married and need security, you call the police, if your home is broken into, you call the police, if you have a quarrel with your wife, you call the police.”
Obasanjo noted that for the nation’s police to turn a new leaf and make the “Change Begins With Me” campaign successful, the public must give them timely information to nip crime in the bud.

The public, he added, must also report misdemeanour of its personnel to the dedicated telephone numbers for the campaign.
Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Iliyasu, had earlier reiterated that EPF “is the brain child of the Inspector-General of Police,” arguing that “the orthodox concepts which regards security as the exclusive preserve of the police and security agencies has become obsolete and moribund.”
Iliyasu said that the EPF comprised of critical stakeholders such as community leaders, religious leaders, traditional rulers, elder statesmen, retired senior security officers, captains of industries and the politicians.
Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun, at the event, praised the initiative, while calling on the police authorities in the state to continue to tackle the problem of kidnapping and land grabbing.
Amosun, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Barrister Taiwo Adeoluwa, disclosed that government had reduced crime and criminality in the state.

According to him, this was done by providing equipment to the police, but said that “there are still issues,” just as he promised additional support to the police as financial resources of the state improve.