I-G orders strict monitoring of firearms usage by officers

The Inspector-General of Police (I-G), Mr Solomon Arase, on Wednesday called on senior police officers to monitor strictly the use of firearms and ammunition by officers under them.
The Force Police Public Relations Officer (FPPRO), ACP Olabisi Kolawole, disclosed the I-G’s order in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
Kolawole said the order was sequel to some alleged killings by drunken and trigger-happy policemen in different parts of the country.
He said that Arase expressed sadness over unlawful killings and restated the need for Assistant Inspectors-General, Commissioners and Area Commanders of various commands and units to monitor strictly the usage of firearms.
According to him, police personnel are supposed to account for arms and ammunition signed out to him or her to the supervisor.
“No policeman is allowed to dispense any bullet without accounting for it to the supervising officer.
“No police man is allowed to kill unlawfully. It is an offence to be drunk while in uniform and carrying gun.
“Policemen have been trained on how and when to use the fire arms,’’ Kolawole told NAN on telephone.
“They are not allowed to shoot indiscriminately. Policemen attached to anybody can only use firearms if the person they are attached to is in danger.
“It is wrong for a policeman attached to an individual to start shooting into the air in a party or any other function where nobody is under threat.
“Any one caught doing so unlawfully will face the law. The supervising officers are advised to monitor their men because they will answer questions if anything goes wrong.’’
On the policemen that have allegedly killed, the police boss said they would face the law after dismissal.
NAN recalls that within the last one week, a drunken Police Sergeant killed three friends and himself in Lagos, while another killed three persons in Enugu State. (NAN)