By Emma Sunday
As a way of supporting the fight against crime and criminality in Rivers State, the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, has donated communication gadgets and other security equipments to the State Police Command.
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the NDDC, Dr Samuel Ogbuku while handing over the equipment to the police at the Command’s headquarters, Moscow Road said the donation shows the partnership between the NDDC and the police in Rivers State.
Ogbuku said the equipments will enhance the Command’s performance in policing the state during and after yuletide season.
The NDDC Boss emphasised that communication is key to policing especially digital communication, stated that same gesture will be replicated in other Niger Delta states to enhance intelligence sharing and joint security operations in the region.
He said, “These equipment that we are donating to the Nigerian Police Force is just to enhance your performance in policing Rivers State. We intend to also replicate same in the various remaining 8 Commands in the region so that there can also be easy communication when it comes to intelligence sharing because we would not only end in Rivers State.
“These ones might not be too much and anybody might just see them as communication equipment but without communication, there is no security because security is now going digital and with digital security this days you don’t need to be chasing people around and so that is why we are trying to see how we can also improve on the digital security architecture of the police commands in the states of the Niger Delta,” he stated.
Ogbuku disclosed that the Commission is working on introducing digital security in Niger Delta region by providing Close Circuit Television Cameras (CCTV) for the Commands.
He noted that the commission had previously donated a barracks for the Command at Omagwa, as well as providing a Safe City Centre for the Department of State Services, DSS, in the state.
He however, commended the police and other security agencies for their commitments which has drastically reduced crime rate, especially kidnapping in the state.
“We know that when it comes to ending of the year, there is usually increase in crime rates but we know that the Nigerian Police Force has also been equal to the task. From September till now, we have not heard of all those incessant crimes around our environment because people normally devote ember months to the period of high crimes but you people have been living up to your responsibilities. We want to thank you for all your sacrifices,” Ogbuku said.
Receiving the equipments, the Rivers State Commissioner of Police, CP Mustapha Bala, thanked the NDDC for the donations to the police in the state.
CP Bala, who was represented by the Deputy Commissioner of Police Police in-charge of Administration in the command, DCP Samuel Erale, said the equipments will boost security and surveillance in the state.
He promised that the Command will effectively utilise the equipments. “With the provision of this equipment, I can tell you that the citizens of Rivers State can go to sleep and be rest assured that we would be everywhere in this Command.
“The equipment has given us about 80 percent coverage of communication all over the state. We can tell you that it’s very easy now for us to get in touch with each other and monitor the crime rates all over the state easily,” Erale said.
Also speaking, the Commissioner of Police in-charge of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Police Command, CP Olatunji Disu, who initiated the idea of securing the equipment through a sustained partnership with the NDDC, also thanked the commission for fulfilling the promise.
He assured that Rivers Command has dedicated officers to effectively utilise the equipment for the benefits of people of the state.
