Days of Police Officers Running Away from Gunshots Over, Says Ondo State CP

•Anambra gets new police chief, Itam

David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka and Fidelis David in Akure

Ondo State Commissioner of Police, Abayomi Oladipo, has said the days of Police officers running away when they hear the sound of gunshots was over in the coastal state.

This was as the inspector general of police, Kayode Egbetokun, has approved the appointment  of Nnaghe Obono Itam, as the new commissioner of Police in Anambra State.

Ondo CP, however, spoke yesterday while inaugurating  a one-week training on combating the scourge of kidnapping, banditry, armed robbery, and other crimes in state for 65 Police officers in the state.

He said the programme was part of the training and retraining in 2024 for conventional police drawn from various Formations/Divisions of the Command.

Oladipo said the participants would be retrained on challenges associated with their responsibility of taking up the lead positions in combating criminal activities and protecting lives and prosperities.

He said the training was also organised in response to one of the key agenda of Egbetokun, who directed that training and retraining were important to any sphere of human endeavor, most especially, the Police.

“You are here today to be part of the local training. I want to enjoin you to key into this because the knowledge  you acquire today might be useful to you in the near future, particularly with the increasing crime in our dear nation.

“The days of running away when you hear gunshots is over. You must face the challenges with all attention it deserves. As you embark on this training, take note that the training is a continuous exercise,” he stressed.

Meanwhile, a new CP has been deployed in Anambra State, following the retirement of Aderemi Adeoye, who was pulled out of the force two weeks ago, after putting in 35 years in service.

Itam is the 34th Commissioner of Police in Anambra State. Born on June 16, 1967 in Yakkur LGA of Cross River State. He joined the Nigeria Police Force in May 18, 1992 as a cadet Assistant Superintendent at the Nigeria Police Academy Annex Kaduna.

Itam holds a BSc in Sociology and Anthropology from the University of Calabar and a Master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Port Harcourt, and had served in many capacities.