The Inspector-General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, has assure Nigerians and residents in the country, of safety and security during and after the yuletide season.
The IGP said that the assurance was more particular for those who would be travelling or joining friends and relatives in public places for the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
The IGP similarly reassured those who would be plying roads, waterways, airports, and rail tracks that proactive measures had been put in place to ensure they arrive their destinations devoid of the activities of criminal elements.
The Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, who made this known in a statement, said that to achieve this, the IGP had ordered Assistant Inspectors-General of Police in charge of Zonal Police Commands, Commissioners of Police and heads of tactical, intelligence and operational units, to ensure heavy deployments of officers in uniforms on highways, rail lines, waterways, airports and at the various recreational centres within their jurisdictions.
Officers whose jurisdictions include big cities with heavy traffic gridlocks had also been tasked to deploy officers on motorbikes to monitor traffic and prevent traffic robberies.
The IGP directed that officers should engage in visibility policing by ensuring that those on routine duties are in uniform and their vehicles marked with the names of their Divisions, Commands or Squadrons for proper identification by members of the public.
“All officers are to ensure strict compliance with standard operating procedures for their specific types of assignment while respect for fundamental rights of all persons is sacrosanct,” the IGP was said to have directed.
He felicitated with the Nigerian Christian community as they celebrate Christmas, while urging them to emulate the character of Christ.
He equally wished all Nigerians a prosperous new year 2023 in advance.
