DIG: Police to Recruit 30,000 Personnel Annually

Mohammed Aminu in Sokoto

The police high command wednesday said it had concluded plans to recruit 30,000 personnel  annually  to enhance community policing in the country.

The Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of North-west zone, Mr. Maigari Dikko, made this known while addressing officers at the state police command headquarters in Sokoto.

He said the bulk of the recruitment would focus on constables and cadet inspectors for adequate community policing in the country.

According to him, the move was aimed at addressing the challenges of inadequate manpower in the police force.

Dikko disclosed that the Inspector General of Police (IG) had already written to President Muhammadu Buhari for approval of the recruitment exercise.

“The IG had already written to the president and as soon as he gives the approval, we intend to recruit 30,000 personnel every year for a period of three years.

“We are really facing manpower challenge in the force. We have only 375,000 personnel in the country and this is inadequate  even with the 10,000 cadets currently undergoing training.

“So, our focus is on constables and cadet inspectors who will actually go to the hinterland for community policing. The  policy thrust of the Nigeria Police Force is on community policing and we have to key in to the international trend,” Dikko said.

He stated that the Force had already recruited 10,000 personnel, who are currently undergoing training in various police training schools across the country.

The DIG further said the management  was looking for alternative source of funding through the Police Trust Fund to tackle challenges bedeviling the force.

Dikko reaffirmed the commitment of the IG towards improving the welfare of officers and rank and file in the country.

He therefore, commended the Sokoto State Police Command for its efforts in curtailing cattle rustling and illicit drugs in the state.

In a remark, the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abdulkadir, said the command was currently faced with challenges which include shortage of manpower and patrol vehicles while some of the police divisions are operating from makeshift structures, as they do not have standard police station.