FG equips police with 50 armoured cars

[Richard Akindele]

As part of effort to combat crime in the country, the Nigeria Police is to purchase 50 Armoured Personnel Carriers while also refurbishing 100 others bought during the administration of Alhaji Shehu Shagari, the Minister of Police Affiars, Alaowei Broderick Bozimo has disclosed.

The minister who disclosed this while chatting with newsmen in Warri over the weekend however refused to say how much the exercise will cost the Federal Government.
Bozimo however said that the police would require about N100bn to equip and fortify all its operations.


“Government decided to set up Police Equipment Fund involving stakeholders which was launched recently in Lagos of which I am the protem chairman, we are working seriously to ensure that the police force wear a new look that could be comparable to any police in the world�.


The minister stressed that the police force was with a population figure of 13,500 in 1999 but this has risen sharply to 325,000, explaining that with this increase, the police needed adequate funding even as government cannot provide for all their needs.


Besides this, Bozimo said that the Police Affairs Ministry has recently taken delivery of a number of aluminium boats for the use of the Marine Police whose operation in the riverine area is to be beefed up, stressing that the presence of marine police in the Niger Delta is pertinent and crucial for hitch free movement along the nation’s waterways.


Source: Thisday