Insecurity: Gbajiabiamila reveals Nigeria Police’s greatest challenge


The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajiabiamila, has said the greatest challenge facing the Nigerian Police in the face of insecurity bedevilling the country was lack of adequate and up to date equipment.
Gbajiabiamila, stated this at the inauguration of Course 2 Participants 2021 of the National Institute for Police Studies at the institute in Jabi, Abuja.


The Speaker, who was represented by Hon Lynda Ikpeazu, said Nigeria could not afford to be losing Police officers in the war they are not fully equipped to contain.
“We all know that right now in Nigeria is not the best of times for us. There are lots of security challenges. My point is that all lives matter.
“For you guys to do your job well You must be properly equipped. I like to say on behalf of the Speaker, Femi Gbajiabiamila, the Chairman,  House Committee on Police Affairs and the House of Representatives that we would be ready at all times to support you.


“We are ready to support the IGP because the police must be properly equipped to fight the war because we are in a war right now.
“If people are not equipped there is no way you can send them out there to go and fight and be killed. So it becomes the responsibility of the police, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to let us know where we can come in as legislators.


“Apart from the laws that have been passed, we are going to do the practical and that is to provide enough monies to have t-1he necessary equipment that you need to go into war.
“It is crazy out there right now. Every second of the day we have to pray that we would be safe, I still feel for you guys out there fighting for us, putting your lives on the line for us.
“I will like to say we appreciate you. Let us know what we need to do because a lot needs to be done right now.
“Something about knowledge is that you keep learning. It got to be continuous and of course the more you ganner knowledge the more responsibility comes with it.


“So definitely the fact that you passed through this course you have been given more responsibilities, So I encourage you to live up to the confidence that is being reposed in you by the police,” he said.
On his part, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Police Affairs, Senator Haliru Jika, who represented the President of the Senate Ahmed Lawan, congratulated the Director General of the institute Professor Olu Ogunsakin for bringing his expertise and professionalism in making sure things worked the way they were now.
“We can now say that the police is ready to reform now because so much have been achieved within a short period of time,” Jika stated. 


He said as legislators, “…That no Assembly from the 1st to the 8th National Assembly has achieved what the 9th Assembly has achieved.
“We were able to pass the Police Trust Fund Bill into law, we were able to pass the police act because since 2004, there was no any major amendment on the police act. We were able to amend over 100 clauses.
“We also passed the police Academy Establishment act to law, it is waiting for the presidential assent. We also have the police service Commission amendment act which we are currently working on and I hope and pray that before the expiration of our tenure we will work on the National Police Institution Act.”
In his speech the director general of the institution said over the last eight weeks, the course participants had demonstrated that they have good working knowledge of Police culture, the boundaries, how to break out of them and redefine them.


“Today is a moment to reflect on how you have spent your time at NIPS. Since you arrived here 2 months ago, the world has changed and continues to demand the best human beings could offer to protect each other from harm,” he added.
As senior officers of the Nigeria Police Force, he challenged the graduating officers to recognise that their opinions and interpretation matters, however, what matters most was the action they take to make the world a safer place.

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