..:: AUTO REPORT AFRICA ::..
Related Articles
Worried about alleged maltreatment of suspected criminals by its Officers and Men, the Nigeria Police Force has taken its Human Rights Training programme to the dreaded Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS.
Inspector General of Police, Alhaji Ibrahim K. Idris, disclosed this recently in Awka, Anambra State, at the opening of a week-long Human Rights Sensitisation and Training of Trainers Workshops for the State Command of the Nigeria Police Force.
Represented by the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Department of Training and Development, DIG Emmanuel T. Inyang, the IGP said human rights modules were incorporated into the curriculum of a special nationwide training organized recently for officers and men of SARS.
He said though the police are trained to be firm in their duties, especially in tackling the rising wave of complex crimes such as kidnapping, terrorism, armed robbery, pipeline vandalism and economic sabotage, they are equally tutored to be courteous and respect the fundamental human rights of the people they are dealing with.
IGP Ibrahim Idris charged them to always bear in mind that policing in a democracy is different from what obtained under a military dictatorship and implored them to adopt the change agenda of the present administration by living and operating according to the police act and regulations, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and regional and international laws and conventions to earn the confidence of the public.
A statement by the Media Focal Person of the Nigeria Police Human Rights Training Programme, Abdulkadir Ahmed Ibrahim, said the workshop which was organized by the Nigeria Police Force is being coordinated by Prisoners Rehabilitation and Welfare Action (PRAWA) with the support of the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ), the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) of the Swiss Government and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
All the Divisional Police Officers and Divisional Crime Officers of the 36 Divisions and formations of the Anambra State Police Command, some human rights activists, lawyers, social welfare officers, journalists and oversight resource teams, representatives of the Legal Aid Council and the National Human Rights Commission and prison officers are attending the workshop.
In his address, the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Department of Training and Development, DIG Emmanuel T. Inyang, said the workshop is aimed at providing a platform to reach out to officers and men of the Nigeria Police on the need for the promotion and protection of human rights and to equip them with the skills to effectively discharge their duties in accordance with the rule of law and in compliance with the human rights best practices.
He reminded the participants that the fundamental duties of a Police Officer include serving the community, safeguarding lives and property, protecting the innocent, keeping the peace and ensuring that the rights of the people to liberty, equality and justice is respected.
In a remark,Mr Yinka Lawal, Acting Executive Director of Prisoners Rehabilitation and Welfare Action, PRAWA, the coordinators of the Nigeria Police Human Rights Programme, said it is aimed at mainstreaming human rights principles into the operations and duties of the force to reduce the incidences of human rights violations by officers and men of the Nigeria Police Force.
The UNODC Project Coordinator in-charge of Support to the Justice Sector in Nigeria, Dr. Uju Agomoh, commended IGP Ibrahim Idris for ensuring that his leadership is guided by all statues and laws in administering the force and for inculcating core values to his subordinates and other officers and men in discharging their duties.
