Nigeria’s number one police officer, Mohammed Adamu, has cautioned officers of the Nigeria Police Force against harassing citizens during the enforcement of the coronavirus lockdown.
In a statement on Thursday by the Force Public Relations Officer, DCP Frank Mba, the police boss said persons on essential duties are duly exempted from the restriction orders.
He added that those dealing in essential services should be accorded due respect and given access to and fro their places of duty.
The statement reads: “The IGP notes that the global community is now in extra-ordinary times, with the lockdown taking its tolls on every component of our national life.
“Therefore, all police officers deployed for the enforcement of these restriction orders must be professional, humane and tactful and must show utmost respect to the citizenry. To this end, the IGP has directed Command Commissioners of Police to immediately commence conduct monitoring of Police Officers deployed on enforcement duties in their areas of responsibilities.
“The IGP has equally charged Zonal Assistant Inspectors General of Police (AIGs) across the nation to ensure adequate supervision of personnel under their watch, as well as due compliance with the Standard Operating Procedure guiding this special task. The AIGs and CPs are also to ensure robust anti-crime patrols and surveillance around vulnerable targets such as medical facilities, shops and markets, residential areas, financial institutions and Automated Teller Machines (ATM) points, amongst others so that criminals do not take undue advantage of the current COVID-19 challenge to perpetrate crimes against the citizenry.
“Meanwhile, the IGP has expressed profound gratitude to Nigerians for their resilience and voluntary compliance with the social restriction orders and cooperation with the Police at all times. He urges citizens to continue to observe all precautionary measures issued by relevant health authorities in order for the nation to defeat this pandemic.“
