Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, on Thursday, applauded men and officers of the Nigeria Police Force for exhibiting professionalism and effective synergy with other security agencies in the discharge of their duties in the state.
Senator Diri, represented by his deputy, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo gave the commendation when the Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of the South-South geo-political zone, Daniel Pedro-Sokari paid him a courtesy visit in Government House, Yenagoa.
The governor expressed appreciation to the Nigeria Police and other security agencies particularly for their pivotal role in the 2023 November 11 Governorship election which was adjudged one of the most peaceful and credible polls in the country.
His words: “Bayelsa election which was among the three off-cycle elections conducted in the country, was adjudged the best both by local, national and international observers. So l want to thank you very much for being professional police officers.
“The South-South zone has always had the best and so we did not expect anything short of what you have done. So, you are a very good ambassador of the zone in terms of your character and profession. We are very impressed by the conduct of your officers and men.”
Senator Diri also gave kudos to the new Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 16, Paul Omata and the state Commissioner of Police, Francis Idu for their effective leadership, noting that Bayelsa has remained one of the safest states in the country as cultism and other criminal activities had significantly reduced.
He solicited for more collaboration between the Nigerian Police and the state government in crime fighting, assuring that the government would support the construction of a befitting Police Command toward enhancing their operations.
On the issue of recruitment into the Police Force, Senator Diri faulted the policy of using several local government areas as a criterion, stressing that if the policy is not reviewed, Bayelsa with only 8 local government areas would continue to be shortchanged.
He, therefore, called on the Nigerian Police to give the state special consideration by increasing the recruitment quota allotted to the state.
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In his remarks, the Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of the South-South geo-political zone, Daniel Pedro-Sokari, said upon assumption of his new posting about 9 months ago, he deemed it necessary to meet with officers and men within his zone to identify their challenges and prospects.
He expressed gratitude to the Senator Diri-led administration for the provision of logistic support as well as assisting the police in the deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in combating crime in the state.
Mr Pedro-Sokari also commended the Prosperity Government for its transformative strides in the area of human capacity development towards redirecting the youths away from social vices such as militancy and sea piracy.
He said: “I have seen the giant development strides of Senator Diri especially in human capacity development. Before now, the state was notorious for militancy, sea piracy and other vices but l want to tell you categorically that the crime rate in Bayelsa State has drastically reduced.”
