A former governor of Cross River State, Donald Duke, has called on the Nigerian government to decentralise the police and to stop housing officers in barracks.
He made the call as one of five ways to improve policing in the country.
Mr. Duke was speaking at the launch of a book “Law on Prevention and Detection of Crimes be the Police in Nigeria” in Abuja.
Firstly, he argued that decentralising policing and presence will deter crime and allow for better monitoring and intelligence gathering.
Secondly, he said the entry level to the agency should be raised from Ordinary National Diploma to Higher National Diploma, adding that aptitude tests should be introduced for entry and promotions.
Thirdly, he advocated constant training and retraining as a key requirement for keeping up with the dynamics of a 21st century policing.
Mr. Duke in a fourth suggestion, urged government to abolish the practice of housing police personnel in barracks, stressing that the police ought to “live among the people and not among themselves.”
Finally, the former governor advised that the practice of cross postings of police officers should be stopped or at least limited.
Mr. Duke, who was the chairman at the book launch, said that one of the pitfalls of the Nigerian society was the near absence of institutional memoir.
He noted that the book had documented over 35 years of service experience and added to the repertoire of scarce institutional knowledge in Nigerian policing.
Present at the ceremony were five former Inspectors-General of Police, representatives of the Inspector-General of Police and representatives of service chiefs, among others.
Source: today.ng
