Era of impunity in police over, says IG

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The Inspector General of Police, Tunji Disu, on Friday declared that the era of impunity in the Nigeria Police Force was over, promising to upgrade the traffic warden unit of the Force.

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Disu stated this in Benin, Edo State during his official visit to the Edo State Command where he had an interactive session with officers of the command.

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The IG said the engagement exposed him to challenges facing officers, including issues affecting the traffic warden unit.

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He stated, “I am leaving here with what they have told me in confidence. And they have been able to open my thoughts.

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“Now I have one or two things to do when I get back to Abuja. Things I never gave thought to. For example, an officer of the traffic warden stood up and said, for many years now, there have not been recruitments into the corps of traffic wardens. That got me thinking. The traffic warden unit should be upgraded. So when I get back home, we are going to talk about it.”

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Speaking on efforts to end impunity within the Force, Disu referenced a recent incident involving a police officer who allegedly shot a civilian.

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He added, “That’s impunity. You arrested somebody who was not struggling with you, you brought him out in daylight and you shot him.

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“The police rose up to the occasion immediately, tried them, dismissed them, and they are going to charge them to court. That is the meaning of impunity.

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“Like I mentioned earlier, the era of impunity is over. We have to have the new Nigerian Police Force. I know I cannot do it alone, that is why I have come here to talk to them, so that all of us will be on the same page.”

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The IG said officers had pledged to work towards building a police force that Nigerians would see as their own.

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He said the officers promised a new police that the community, the state and Nigerians would embrace.

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Earlier, the Edo State Commissioner of Police, Monday Agbonika, appealed to the IGP to extend more support to the command in the areas of logistics, tactical operations and personnel development.

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He said, “The command intensified high visibility policing, aggressive bush combing operations, confidence building patrols, and intelligence-driven raids across identified criminal hideouts and flash points within the state, hence the IGP support is needed.”

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The Nigeria Police Force has in recent months intensified efforts to reform its operations, improve discipline among officers and restore public confidence following incidents involving allegations of misconduct, brutality and abuse of power by some personnel.

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