Assets Declaration - Police officers must declare Assets – Acting IG

Police officers must declare assets – Acting IG

All officers from the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) to Inspector- General of Police, will henceforth declare their assets, the Acting Inspector- General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, has declared.

Idris made the statement yesterday in Abuja when he paid a courtesy visit to the Minister of Interior, Lt.-Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau (rtd).

He said that the directive was in line with Section 13 cap 15 Code of Conduct Act. “Every police officer from the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police to Inspector-General who are commissioned officers must declare their assets,” Idris said. He added that the directive would guide the conduct of police officers in carrying out their duties.

The police boss promised that under his administration, the integrity of the force would be further enhanced. “I assure you sir, that we will raise the integrity of the Nigeria Police Force to be more accountable to the people,” he said.

The acting IG added that under his command, the police would operate within the rule of law. He said that the presence of police officers would be felt in all villages and streets across the country. Responding, Dambazau urged the acting IG to focus on the three key issues of corruption, economy and security for the success of this administration.

“You have a lot of challenges as the chief law officer of the country,” he said. The minister urged the new police boss to collaborate with other security agencies to address the issues of crimes and postconflict resolution in the North-East. “The post conflict resolution in the North-East has to be comprehensive and holistic,” he said.

Dambazau advised his guest to carry everybody along and put the right persons in the positions of command commissioners and zonal commanders. “No matter how smart you think you are, you cannot do it alone without the support of others,” he said, and advised Idris to make the welfare of his officers a priority.

He assured him of the support of the ministry to discharge his mandate. In his inaugural speech, Idris said that the police under his administration would be guided by the international core values of policing.

Meanwhile, as Idris takes briefs from formations, departments and others, after assuming of fice on Wednesday, there are strong indications that the redeployment and posting of Assistant Inspectors-General of Police (AIGs), and Command Commissioners of Police (CPs), will be his first major assignment.

A senior police source, who spoke with New Telegraph in confidence, said the IGP is determined to pursue vigorously, his “Principle of Democratic Policing”, in his quest to take the Force to the next level. New Telegraph gathered that for the new Police Chief to successfully implement his policy direction, he will need to appoint a team that will facilitate his mission.

The source said Idris is a thorough-bred professional officer, who will not only sustain some landmark projects of his predecessor, Mr. Solomon Arase, but will do all within his power as IGP, to restore public confidence in the Nigeria Police.

“If you know the new IGP, you will understand how passionate he is about moving the Force to the next level. “That is why one of his first major decisions, from what I know, is redeployment and new postings. “Get it right; the new IGP has his dream of advancing the cause of the Force, and he will need to saddle those that can facilitate this action plan such enormous responsibilities.

“You know zonal and state commands, among others, are the vehicles to achieving his set objectives,” the source said. In his inaugural speech on Wednesday, Idris had vowed to deal with cases of armed robbery, cultism and other violent crimes in the country.

To this end, the Acting IGP said he would undertake restructuring and reorganisation of the Special Anti-Robbery Squads (SARS) in the 36 State Police Commands and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Apart from SARS, the new police chief also said Special Units of the Police, such as the Police Mobile Force (PMF), and the Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU), will be reorganised. He had said: “Violent criminality is gradually taking over our streets, neighbourhoods and communities.

In order to address these ugly challenges, the Special Anti- Robbery Squads in the State Commands will be restructured, reorganised and made more robust to reverse these ugly trends in our communities.

“The time has come for the Nigeria Police to play more active role in the unity and stability of this country. This can only be achieved through the reorganisation and restructuring of the Special Police Units of Mobile Force and Counter Terrorism Units,” Idris said.