The Police Sevice Commission (PSC) has approved new policy guidelines for deployment of management and tactical commanders in the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and the imperativeness for gender-senstivity in the deployment of Assistant Inspectors- General of Police (AIGs) and Commissioners of Police (CPs) to Zlzonal and state command headquarters.
PSC Head, Press and Public Relations, Ikechukwu Ani, in a press statement, on Sunday in Abuja, said: “The Commission considered and approved the policy guidelines at its 21st Plenary Meeting which held at its Corporate Headquarters in Jabi, Abuja on Thursday, June 15, 2023 and presided over by its Chairman, IGP Solomon Arase, (retd.).
“The Commission said the NPF should be guided by the principle of Federal Character in both recruitment, at all levels, and deployment of its personnel at management and tactical levels to ensure balance, equity and fairness in the system.
“It observed that the current deployment of Commissioners of Police to State Commands leaves much to be desired in reflecting the principle of equity and fairness to all geo-political zones of the country, stressing that the current statistics of such deployments was against the North East and South East geopolitical zones.
“The Commission observed the disproportional distribution and lopsided deployment of Command Commissioners and noted that it has become extremely important that a fair representation of all geo-political zones is always reflected in these deployments to eschew and address the feeling and sense of marginalisation and injustice by certain zones of the country in the NPF.”
Ani further stated that the Commission at Plenary and relying on Section 6(e) and (7) of the PSC Act which empowers the Commission to ‘formulate and implement policies aimed at the efficiency and discipline in the NPF; and perform such other functions which in the opinion of the Commission are required to ensure the optimal efficiency of the NPF considered and approved the new policy guidelines.
“Henceforth request for deployment of CPs to state commands must ensure that the disadvantaged zones are considered first in the proposals to the Commission in order to redress the present imbalance and lopsided deployments skewed against the North-East and South-East regions of the country.
“All geo-political zones of the country must now have at least 15 per cent representation in the deployment of AIGs to Zones, CPs to state commands and posting of xommanding officers of Police Mobile Force (PMF), Counter-Terrorism (CTU), and Special Protection Unit (SPU).
“That all Police deployments to zones and commands at both management, Deputy Commissioners of Police (DCPs) and Assistant Commissioners of Police (ACPs) and tactical levels, commanding officers of PMF/SPU/CTU, must recognise our heterogeneity and reflect fairness and equity in terms of ethnicity and religion,” the spokesperson said.
He noted that the Commission advised the IGP to be guided appropriately by this Policy guidelines founded on principles of fairness and justice to all members of the NPF.
“It is also geared towards eliciting trust and confidence of the Nigerian people and taking ownership of their Police in showing greater understanding, cooperation and support to the NPF towards improved community safety and adequate internal security in Nigeria.
“The Commission on its Policy on Imperativeness of Gender-senstivity in the deployment of AIGs and CPs noted the continued practice of lopsided deployments of only male police officers to zones and commands with no fair consideration and representation of female police officers who are qualified for such positions.
“It observed that this will, in no time, portray the police as an organisation that is anti-woman empowerment and averse to women inclusivity in governance,” he added.
The spokesperson disclosed that the commission also considered and approved that “at least three state commands out of the 37 commands must have female police officers as their CPs and out of the 17 zonal headquarters, at least one Zlzone must have a female AIG to head the zone.
“The Commission had also at the Plenary Meeting approved the appointment of two DIGs, promotion of 14 CPs to the next rank of AIGs, and 22 DCPs to CPs,” Ani added.
