Why stop-and-search will continue, by AIG Egbetokun

• Published date: 12 January 2023
• Publication title: Nigeria - The Nation

The Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) for Zone 7, Kayode Egbetokun, has said the 'stop-and-search' policy of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) will not stop anytime soon.

He said the policy had proven to be effective in tackling crimes and insecurity across the country.

Egbetokun, who spoke yesterday at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) police command, also said there were times when officers and men of the force on 'stop-and-search' duty intercepted kidnappers and rescued their victims.

The police chief noted that despite the complaints against the operations, the benefits of having men on 'stop-and-search' were enormous.

Commenting on the forthcoming general election, Egbetokun said: 'Aside from being the lead agency in internal security, the Nigeria Police Force is also the lead agency in election security management, as stipulated in the relevant sections of the Electoral Act 2020.

'The calendar and schedule of activities of the electoral process in Nigeria can be divided into pre-election, during election and post-election periods. The Nigeria Police Force has the mandate to provide security throughout the entire electoral process. It is on this note that IGP Usman Alkali Baba organised workshops in all the six geopolitical zones on election security management.

'As a disciplined force, we all must key into the policing trust of the IGP Baba in order to guarantee a hitch-free general election. We must ensure that crime and criminality is reduced to the barest minimum.'

He added: 'There is no doubt that the job of policing in Nigeria is a challenging one. From my experience, however, policing in the FCT is both challenging and interesting.

'The interesting part of it is the way the challenges are being tackled. Policing anywhere is interesting when you are working hard and getting results. When you have men who are well trained, well equipped, well-motivated; when you have resources...