Rebecca Ejifoma
The new Lagos State Commissioner of Police (CP), Idowu Owohunwa, has emphasised operational efficiency and strong inter-agency synergy with the military detachments and other state and federal law enforcement and public safety agencies.
The CP noted this in a press statement during the handing over ceremony yesterday at the Command Headquarters in Lagos.
He said: “As I assume the leadership mandate at the Centre of Excellence on this day, I shall optimally leverage on these strengths in my vision to positively change the policing narratives in the State.
“Towards this goal, I assure you that I will draw on my professional experience and deploy an all-society strategy towards up-scaling operational standards of policing in all aspects.”
According to Owohunwa, this would involve deploying citizen’s engagement strategy, intelligence-driven tools, and strategic approaches to crime prevention, detection, and prosecution.
Addressing the officers, the CP reminded them that “Our bond with Lagosians is to keep them safe and secure. Logosians want this done within the context of the rule of law, professionalism, and utmost respect for their fundamental human rights.”
Relying on the expected support of the government, residents and all officers of the Command, Owohunwa pledged to work assiduously to provide the requisite leadership to the State Police Command in a manner that will prioritise discipline, training and capacity development, professionalism, and public accountability.
He added: “With your support and trust of Lagosians, I intend to adopt a problem-solving framework founded on the policing principle of zero-tolerance to crime, the practice of crime-mapping, and utilisation of crime statistics and intelligence analysis tools to support perspective policing. The CP also hinted at the forthcoming election. “The outgoing CP has briefed me in detail on the strategies and action plans for the exercise. As we commence the process of giving effect to these plans, I wish to assure Lagosians of our firm resolve and full preparedness of the Lagos State Police Command to ensure that the process is peaceful, secure, and credible.”
The CP noted that police operations would also be conducted within the dictates of the Revised Code of Conduct for Police Officers on Election Security Duty which was recently developed by the Inspector General of Police and distributed to all State Police Commands, including Lagos State.
He, however, urged the electorate to cooperate with the police and exercise their franchise within the ambit of the law in the electoral process.
“The Command is committed to identifying, isolating, and dealing decisively with any person or group that intends to put our resolve to ensure peace within the electoral process to test,” he assured Lagosians.
