Inspector General of Police, IGP Ibrahim K. Idris, has ordered all Commissioners of Police in charge of State Commands and their Supervising Assistant Inspectors General of Police and other Police Formations nationwide to be on red-alert.
He said this is prevent the spread of the renewed Boko Haram attacks on soft targets, such as Mosques, Churches, Markets, Schools, Motor Parks, Farm Lands, Settlements, Villages, Towns and Cities in the North East States of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe, and also quell the recent attacks by armed bandits in Zamfara State and other vulnerable states in the country.
Force spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, in a statement on Wednesday, said the Police Joint Team will also pay particular attention to the security of IDP Camps and liberated areas in the mentioned States.
He said: “While, the ongoing Joint Operations between the Police and other Security agencies in the States of the North East of the Country is being sustained, additional deployment of Police Personnel from Police Mobile Force (PMF), the Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU), Police Explosive Ordinance Department (EOD), Force Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department (FCIID) Personnel, Attack and Sniffer Dogs Section have been made to the States of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe to bring new impetus to the fight against insurgency by Nigeria Police Force in the affected States.
“The Nigeria Police Force deeply commiserates with the Government and People of Adamawa and Zamfara States over the recent killings in a mosque in Mubi and another attack in Numan LGAs, and in Shinkafi and Maradun Local Government Areas respectively. The Force also wishes to implore the people in the affected States to be vigilant and more security conscious most especially during periods of worship.
“A significant number of worshippers should be assigned and rotated to screen and watch over the praying venues to complement Police Personnel deployed to protect them. They are to promptly report suspicious acts or persons to the nearest Police detachment or station to avert untoward incidents.
“Furthermore, the Commissioners of Police in the affected States have been redirected by the Inspector General of Police to make additional posting of Joint Police Team to patrol mosques and churches and other vulnerable locations on Twenty Four (24) hours bases to ensure that no such attack occur again.
“The Area Commanders, Divisional Police Officers (DPOs) and other Commanding Officers in the Area Commands, Divisions in the towns and villages are under strict instructions to work with the people in the localities and sustain Police Visibility Patrols in the mentioned States.”
Meanwhile, a new Commissioner of Police who was previously Commissioner of Police, Federal Operations, has been redeployed to Zamfara State and has since resumed duty.
Additional Police Personnel comprising 20-Units of Police Mobile Force, 10-Cells of Counter Terrorism Unit, and Special Police Forces and 2,000 conventional Police Personnel, in compliance with the Presidential directive, have also been posted to the State.
The new Commissioner of Police has been mandated by the IGP to re-gird the security architecture of the State, quell attacks by armed bandits on villagers and other innocent Nigerians at Shinkafi and Maradin Local Government Areas as well as restore lasting peace, security and normalcy.