Policing Isn’t a Tea Party, DIG Alabi Tells Police Officers

Fidelis David in Akure

The Deputy Inspector-General of Police (DIG) in-charge of Southwest, Sylvester Alabi, has declared that policing is not a tea party, but a very serious and tedious job which demands thorough professionalism.

Alabi, who made the charge at the weekend while addressing the officers and men of the Ondo State Command in Akure, said the time has come for police officers to engage community and religious leaders to tackle criminality in society.

The police boss, who charged police officers on professionalism towards eradicating completely the issues of kidnapping and other for of criminalities in the zone, said his visitation was on the directive of the Inspector-General of Police (IG), Kayode Egbetokun, to all the zonal DIGs to assess security situations in their respective zone.

The police boss, however, said fighting crime in the Southwest had yielded positive results, but there is the need to do more.

He said: “When something happens unexpectedly, it is the duty of the officer to go back to the drawing board and re-strategies. Policing is not a tea party, it is a very serious, tedious, physical and mentally challenged job.

“So, it’s a job that entails total commitment, because we owe members of the public a duty to secure their lives and property. Generally, Southwest is one of the most peaceful zone in the country today, but I don’t want you to be carried away by that, to avoid embarrassment.

“So, it’s time for you to double your efforts and ensure the pocket of occasional kidnapping and armed robbery being experienced becomes a thing of the past. We need to sit down and do a serious planning to eradicate completely any incident of kidnapping in Ondo State.”

Alabi, therefore, called on police officers to imbibe the ethics of the job, saying corruption and extortion would not be condoned.

“As police officers, you can do your job and earn a goodwill without delving into all those unprofessional and unethical conducts. I am admonishing you to desist from that, and it is better for you to attract goodwill for yourself from well-meaning Nigerians.

“Because if you do your job diligently and show that you are a man of integrity, you will be loved by the people and gain more confidence and trust from people,” he said.

The Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) in-charge of Zone 17, comprising Ondo and Ekiti  States, Abiodun Asabi, assured the DIG that the zone would continue to align with the agenda of the IG.

“We are not going to rest on accolades that our zone is the most peaceful in the country, we will continue to push our zone more to be free from any form of criminality,” Asabi said.

Earlier, the Commissioner of Police in Ondo State, Abayomi Oladipo, said the command has mapped out plans to ensure that the state is devoid of actions and inactions that can heat up the polity ahead of the November 16, 2024, governorship election in the state.