by Christiana Gokyo, Jos
The Plateau State Police Commissioner, CP Okoro Julius Alawari, has advised ‘disgruntled elements,’ who are trying so hard to Christen what he termed as “Home of Wars and Woes” to relocate from the State or be ready to face the full weight of the law when apprehended.
The CP assured criminals that the Plateau State Police workforce under his administration will not rest until it fishes out and deals severely with them, in accordance with the laws of the land.
While briefing newsmen in his office in Jos on Wednesday, CP Alawari said, “To my officers and men of this great Command, I have heard about your remarkable commitment and how you have always fought tooth-and-nail to ensure that Plateau State remains safe and peaceful for all to thrive.”
He implored them to sustain the tempo and brace-up for the task ahead, and urged officers, who are associated with corruption and other unprofessional conducts, to turn a new leaf as this administration will not condone such shameful conducts which negates a Section of the Police Act and Regulation 2020 (as amended).
According to him, on assumption of duty, he has painstakingly studied the security architecture of the State and outlined the prevalent crimes that are committed on the Plateau.
The Police Commissioner said, these include kidnapping, banditry, armed robbery and arm running, theft, farmers/herders clashes, cattle rustling, attacks on villages, among others, which are more prevalent in Barkin Ladi, Riyom and Mangu LGAs, respectively.
While assuring that, he has re-strategized and deployed new operational methods to tackling these security challenges in the State, the CP noted that, himself and his team will be visiting Mangu LGA on 16/8/2023 to assess the security situation of the area.
According to him, while designing a workable security template for effective Policing of the State, he has noticed that there are certain local government areas that need more Police Stations and security presence.
He noted that himself and his management team has come up with modalities to help these communities by opening more Police Stations where there are none.
He revealed that, some Police Posts and Out Stations which were previously closed down will also be reopened, adding, “And due to development and increase in population size of some communities in the State, we will soon upgrade some Out Stations to Police Stations.”
CP Alawari also pleaded to the good people of Plateau State to continue to give them all useful, accurate and timely information to aid them in tackling criminal situations in the State, as policing is everyone’s business.
He was also emphatic that the communities should be bold enough to report any unethical conduct of his men to the IGP and CP X Squad, to the Divisional Police Officers (DPOs), Area Commanders and Police Public Relations Department (PPRD).
CP Alawari promised to work hand-in-glove with other security agencies on the Plateau to enhance peace in the State, and also called on all sister agencies to support and compliment their efforts in making the State safer for all, as it is their responsibility to protect lives and property of the citizenry, which is the primary goal of all security agencies in the country.
He commanded the security group for their complementary efforts and assured them that they are making arrangements for a robust training for them through the State Intelligence Bureau (SIB) and the Police Public Relations Department (PPRD) of the Command.
“I cannot end this briefing without acknowledging and appreciating our dutiful members of the Fourth Estate of the Realm,” the CP stated, while expressing his sincere gratitude to the Media for always ensuring that the people of the State are fed with the right and accurate information.
“I note the great role the media is playing in the fight against crime and criminality and the task of verifying information from us before making your publications public, as mere misinformation could set the whole State ablaze and this could adversely affect those of us, who make our daily bread on the Plateau.”
According to him, some of the achievements in recent times recall that sometimes ago when Mangu was attacked, the Command arrested two (2) suspects which also led to the arrest of six (6) more suspects, making a total number of eight (8) suspects.
He said, “One of them being paraded has already made confessional statements. They could have not been here because they have been relocated to the other facilities, in order to decongest their cells; but investigation is still ongoing and we will do well to keep the good people of Plateau abreast of the findings of their investigations as time goes on.”
