Nigeria is in the process of recruiting 10,000 police officers in a bid to strengthen the security capacity of the agency while making efforts to improve the welfare and wages of the force.
According to President Mohammadu Buhari, the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC) has been directed to also review upward the salaries and benefits of Police officers.
Buhari who spoke in Lagos at the handing over of security equipment by the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu to the Lagos State Police Command, said his administration will act firmly and decisively against any and all persons fomenting or carrying out attacks on Police Force and other security personnel.
‘‘We are currently recruiting 10,000 new Police officers to reinforce our personnel capacity across the country.
“In addition to this, I have directed the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission to carry out an upward review of Police salaries and benefits,’’ he said.
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He said his directive to security agencies, to shoot any person or persons found illegally wielding AK-47s and other assault weapons, remains in place.
President Buhari warned that ‘‘a nation that turns its Police personnel and infrastructure into targets of violence and destruction is a nation on the path of self-destruction.’’
‘‘We will secure our infrastructure, our highways, our communities, and our forests, and we will secure the lives of our people,’’ he said.
‘‘I have charged the Inspector-General to leave no stone unturned in rebuilding the morale of his officers and men, especially in the aftermath of the mindless violence associated with the EndSARS protests, as well as the recent spate of attacks on Police Stations in some parts of the country,” he said.
The President also used the occasion to reiterate that the ‘‘Federal Government takes very seriously our constitutional oath to secure the lives and properties of the Nigerian people, adding that his administration was conscious of the fact that lasting security is a necessary foundation for business, investment and true prosperity.
‘‘This new scheme will build confidence within our local communities and make them active stakeholders in the safety and security of their environs.
