Osinbajo Lays Foundation for N16bn NPF Crime, Incident Database

Dele Ogbodo in Abuja
The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, on Tuesday laid the foundation for the construction of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Crime and Incident Database (NPCID) estimated to cost up to N16 billion upon completion.

 Speaking at the event in Abuja, Osinbajo said the centre would equip the Nigeria Police Force with the necessary modern equipment to be able to handle crime tracking and investigation more smartly with modern technology.

 He said: “Government is already set for smart policing and this is going to be an incredibly useful tool and there is a lot of information everywhere.

“So, I expect to see smart policing everywhere, faster investigation and a much smarter NPF.”
He tasked NPF on the deployment of modern techniques for solving crimes, noting that the Nigeria an police officers have always been one of  the best in the world.

 Osinbajo, expressed hope that with the establishment of the centre across the country,  the Force would be equipped with all the necessary instrument work to be ahead of criminals.
“The NPF has been one of the best in the world. I am saying this because I witnessed what they achieved in Somalia on a peace mission as I worked with the United Nations and saw how our police distinguished themselves.

 “Also, as an attorney general in Lagos for  eight years, I worked with the police. The  challenge has been lack of equipment and welfare of the policemen. I believe that with the proposed Nigeria Police Crime and incident database, our men will conduct police activities smartly and faster.”

 In a remark, the acting Inspector General of Police (IG), Mr. Ibrahim Idris, explained that the centre, which is projected at N16 billion when completed, would help the police to process data of suspect and get the needed information even if the suspect committed the crime in any part of the country.

 He said the purpose of the centre which is due for completion in three years’ time is to harness  all data across the federation into one central base where police detectives can just key in the name of a suspect and all his or her data will pop out.
He noted that the establishment of the centre was long over due considering the myriads of challenges that are characterised with the manual form of police crime and incident registers, which have become obsolete and moribund.
Also in a related development, the FCT Police Commissioner, Mr. Mohammed Mustafa, inaugurated FCT Police elders forum as a channel for enhancing police-community relations at the grass root level.

 He said: “Policing requires the active participation of all and sundry, with the exception of people with questionable character.
“And this explains why the Command took its time to do thorough background check before coming up with its list of eminent people who will form an integral part of the command security architecture.”

 He said the  constitution of the forum was part of measures to bring opinion leaders together who will form a formidable team that will meet at intervals to brainstorm and come up with viable ideas and information that will further help the police to serve FCT residents better.