The Acting Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has announced plans to establish a Special Intervention Squad to deal with security threats in the country.
Egbetokun disclosed this when he led the police force management team on a courtesy call to Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano State on Saturday at Government House.
He solicited support from the Kano State government in order to succeed with Kano being one of the pilot states.
“Your Excellency, I want to inform you that the present police management has decided to set up a squad called the Special Intervention Squad to intervene quickly in a crisis.
“Where there is a crisis or violent crime in Nigeria we have a dedicated squad that can easily be deployed to take care of those challenges,” he said.
Egbetokun said that the need for the new squad could not be overemphasised as its success would depend on the cooperation and support the police got from the Kano State government.
“We will equip the squad with well-trained personnel and well-remunerated to meet the overwhelming security challenges.
“The special squad will be specially trained, we will specially equip them, with modern working facilities. We will kit them properly and we will remunerate them specially. They will be so motivated to do their job.
“I want to appeal for the cooperation and support of Your Excellency in making a success of this arrangement.
“We have chosen Kano state as one of the pilot states. But a lot will depend on the support we get from His Excellency.
“I honestly want you to take note of that and to take this as a request coming from the Nigerian Police to Gov. Yusuf,” he said.
Responding, the governor lauded the political commitment demonstrated by the present police management in the ongoing fight against banditry, kidnapping and armed robbery in the country.
Yusuf expressed appreciation for the way policing was taking place in the state which had drastically reduced some of the security challenges since the advent of the new administration.
He explained that the Kano State government would continue to support the police to perform optimally.
“Kano state government is a very serious government in this dispensation. We came on board when there were very serious insecurity challenges in the state.
“There was the issue of thuggery, the issue of phone snatching, armed robbery, kidnapping, banditry and so on and so forth.
“When we came we ensured that we brought all the security agencies working in Kano on board, especially the Nigerian Police Force.
“We have a very good relationship between the government and the police authorities,” said the governor.
“I want to assure you that we will continue doing our best to ensure that we achieve peace in the state and deal with the insecurity issues bedevilling the state.
“Let me seize this opportunity to also ask the IG to support us also in our fight against drug abuse, armed robbery, phone snatching, thuggery and so on and so forth.
“We appreciate what you have been doing, the tremendous efforts you have been making in ending kidnapping, not only in Kano but in Nigeria as a whole,” Yusuf said.
NAN
