The Commissioner of Police in Lagos, Abiodun Alabi, says acts of extortion by police operatives are encouraged by acquiescent citizens. He asked citizens to “please stop giving bribes to the police.”

Mr Alabi stated this during the Lagos State Stakeholders’ Forum on Police Accountability (SFPA), organised by the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre in partnership with Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), held on Wednesday in Ikeja, Lagos.

He asserted that “There are so many Lagosians who are willing to encourage extortion,” positing that both the bribe giver and taker are guilty of the same offence.

The police chief insisted that bail charges are free and urged citizens to painstakingly resist attempts to extort them under any guise.

“Nobody can force you to part with your money, if you do not want to part with it, bail is free. It is because you don’t take the time to fight for your rights,” Mr Alabi reiterated. “You are always willing because you believe that if I don’t pay, I will not be released. It is a lie!”

The police commissioner said police are responsible for the protection of lives and properties of citizens, adding that communities should constantly engage, consult and work with the police in order to bridge the gap and trust issues between police and the community.

He advised citizens to get the contacts of divisional police officers and reach out to them on issues affecting their communities, adding that citizens should give out information unanimously to the police without any fear of intimidation.

Mr Alabi said people must perceive police officers as members of their family and not just friends so they can change the societal narrative about police integrity.

“I want to implore people to change their narrative by saying the police are your friend, police should not be your friend alone, police should be your family,” he said.

He stressed: “I want us to see the police as our families. Until we change the narrative and see police with integrity perception, we will not move forward. If there is anything police are doing that is wrong, bring it out. It will be addressed.”

Earlier, the coordinator of SFPA Okechukwu Nwanguma, mentioned that the forum was established in 2018 to encourage constant interaction and engagement with the state police on issues of police accountability.

Mr Nwanguma recognised and applauded the efforts of four police officers, who were honoured with awards by the organisers of the event for their tremendous efforts and outstanding performance in the course of their job. They include; Taiwo Kasumu, Patricia Amadin, Adeyemo Ogunyemi and Abubakar Aliyu.

Katsina state governor, Rt.Hon. Aminu Masari exhuded confidence yesterday that, the ruling All Progressives Congress(APC) will win the forthcoming 2023 general elections despite the current situation facing the country.

Masari who spoke at Igbaja in Kwara state during the commissioning of ultra modern hostel campus named after him by the management of a privately owned university, Al-Hikma university, Ilorin, said that,”those saying it will be difficult for the APC to win the forthcoming election, didn’t know what they are saying at all.

“That was what they said in 2019 that it will be difficult for the APC to win because of the country’s situation, but it has come to pass that they were wrong”.

He added that , “The fundamental thing is that the issue affecting this country has global dimensions.

“The whole world is facing crisis and inflation. American is going under the worst inflation in the last 40yrs, likewise Ghana, Niger and our neighbouring countries.

“We have to appreciate what is going on in the world before we unnecessarily criticised an issue that is global. The issue we have are beyond what one country can solve.

“I consider this as a passing face in our development journey. Countries that are over 400yrs old are still facing some crisis. When did the Irish and British overcame theirs.

“See, we have history to learn and borrow from and we should pray for our leaders to do what is right. But all of us should know that we have a role and contribution to make”.

He stated further that, agriculture remain a major sector of the economy that can take Nigeria out of the economic woes.

He said that, with the rising cost of food items across the globe, the country must grow what it eats to be self sufficient.

Masari maintained that agriculture has been the main stay of the Nigerian economy before the advent of Oil.

He said that, “what would have happened to Nigeria without the foresight to revamp the agricultural sector with covid and the prize of crude oil”.

According to him “That is one of the greatest achievements of this administration. So we should grow what we eat and eat what we grow to feed ourselves.

“If we are not self sufficient, there is no way we can make progress as a nation,” he said.