REMARKS BY IGP USMAN ALKALI BABA, psc(+), NPM, fdc DURING THE MEETING WITH COMMANDANTS OF NIGERIA POLICE COLLEGES ON WEDNESDAY 5TH JANUARY 2022 AT THE FORCE HEADQUARTERS, ABUJA
I welcome you all to today’s conference with Commandants of Nigeria Police Colleges and Training Schools in the Nigeria Police Force. This meeting is the first in recent times and it is my first official public engagement in the New Year. This clearly highlights the importance to which my leadership places on training and capacity development of in-coming and serving personnel of the Force.
2. Training and human capacity enhancement are fundamental determinants of the level of efficiency of any organization. Indeed, as often said, no organization can perform above the capacity of its human assets. This explains why most institutions invest heavily in quality training of their personnel.
3. The need for quality manpower is even more essential for an institution as critical to national security as the Nigeria Police and the responsibility for this process falls squarely on the knowledge, patriotism, sense of dedication and discipline of Commandants and other instructors of the Police Training Institutions where the basic training of our recruit Constables will hold. The import of this is that all eyes of the Force and that of the entire citizens of the country at large will, over the next few months of the training, be on you and your respective Instructors.
4. It is for this reason that I found it important to summon this meeting with a view to sharing my expectations with you, and engaging you directly towards setting training standards, agenda, and anticipated outcomes for the 2020/2021 recruit trainees that will be under your professional tutelage. For this purpose, the recruit training for the 2020/2021 Phase of the Nigeria Police Recruitment exercise will commence on 10th January, 2022. It will hold in the four (4) Premier Police Colleges in Lagos, Kaduna, Maiduguri and Orji River, as well as in twelve (12) other Police Training Institutions spread across the country.
5. Permit me at this juncture to note that the current recruitment exercise has been well articulated in an all-inclusive and all-stakeholders process which involved the Police Service Commission, the Ministry of Police Affairs as well as other strategic relevant stakeholders. This obviously explains why the process has not only been transparent and seamless but has also thrown up the best candidates that the country can offer at that lower cadre of policing.
6. As we proceed to the next phase, which is the training of the successful candidates, it is my expectation that all of you as strategic Heads of the Training Institutions will facilitate the process of the transition of the recruits from ‘civilianship’ to well-groomed police personnel that will see themselves as incorruptible, civil, and true security servants of the citizens with the right orientation as protectors of the rights of all Nigerians. This is the image that that my leadership intends to project for the average police personnel under our democratic values.
7. Our vision, therefore, is to ensure that the upcoming training is fit-for-purpose and must deviate from the old-fashioned standard that dehumanizes the recruits in a manner that turns them to hostile security servants to members of the public that they were recruited to serve. Our plan is to emplace a new training regime that must impart the virtues of professionalism, knowledge, discipline, confidence knowledge, and critical decision-making potentials in the recruits. This is with the outcome of ensuring that they are trained appropriately and humanely enough to advance my agenda of ‘policing with courage and serving with compassion’.
8. Accordingly, as custodians and guidance of the recruits, you are to provide mentorship by displaying high level of ethical standards. This is important because students learn more, although subconsciously, from watching and imbibing the characters and attitudes of their teachers and instructors. It is for this reason that it is important to drum it up that you must all practice what you would be preaching to the recruits.
9. Let me use this medium to remind you of this administration’s zero tolerance to acts of corruption or extortion of any form. Accordingly, there must be no form of extortion of the recruits by the Directing, Drill Staff or any other staff of the Police Colleges. Note that the Force Management Team has our ears on the ground and any form of infraction on this directive will be visited with severe sanction and appropriate disciplinary measures.
10. Adequate provisions have been made by the Federal Government for the welfare of the recruits and the Staff of the Training Colleges. You are, however, expected to liaise with the Commissioners of Police in your respective States to ensure that adequate security arrangements are made for the protection of the Colleges. Equally, the training must always comply with the protocols laid down by the Presidential Panel on COVID-19. In this regard, all Staff and recruits must wear face masks and observe social distancing among other measures.
11. I wish to use this medium to once again, immensely thank President Muhammadu Buhari, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for his statesmanship, visionary leadership and firm commitment to the Nigeria Police Reform Agenda. Aside the enhancement of the welfare package across board for personnel of the Force, the sustenance of the recruitment process and prompt appropriation of funds for the exercise have been critical in our drive to address the historic manpower gaps that impact on our ability to optimally attain our policing mandate.
12. I wish to similarly, thank the Minister of Police Affairs and the Chairman and Commissioners of the Police Service Commission for the understanding, cooperation, and unprecedented support for my leadership. I look forward to leveraging on this positive relationship towards advancing our commonly shared Police reform agenda. I must also, particularly, commend DIG Danmallam Mohammed, the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Department of Training and Development and his Team for their forthrightness and sacrifice which combined to ensure the success of the recruitment process.
13. As we proceed into the object of this Conference, it is my expectation that we shall engage frankly, and courageously share ideas and experiences that will enrich the training exercise and ensure that pathways towards attaining our projected training outcomes are achieved.
14. On this note, I welcome you all to this conference and pray that Allah (SWT) continues to perfect the Nigeria Police as we rededicate ourselves to the safety and security of our beloved nation.
