Safer school and community program embarked upon throughout the country by the Police Campaign Against Cultism and Other Vices(POCACOV) is in line with the actualization of the Public Safety and Security Framework provided by the Nigeria Police Force under IGP Mohammed Abubakar Adamu in line with the tenets of the community oriented policing(COP).
It requires that stakeholders will be under one umbrella and close ranks to ensure effective security and safety in our environment and giving impetus to Safer school and community.
Stakeholders includes government and non-governmental organizations, ministries, department and agencies, community based groups, faith-based organizations, artisans, parents and teachers associations, corporate bodies, relevant security organizations amongst others.
The safer school and community program is a community oriented activity and engagement program embarked upon by the Nigeria Police Force through the Police Campaign Against Cultism and other vices(POCACOV) to sensitize different stakeholders and galvanizing their support to aid in preventing issues relating to safety and security of our schools and communities.
This however has become necessary because security they say, is everybody’s business and moving forward according to Robert Peel the father of modern day policing, police are the publics and the publics are the police.
The safer school/community program has also given birth to the Nigeria Police Force school visitation program to strenghten the school/community sensitizations and to enable them remain proactive and know what to do and when to do them.
The safer school/community program is a community oriented policing activity that also helps in discouraging school children/student from getting involved or becoming victims of cultism, exam malpractice, drug and substance abuse, trafficking in persons(T.I.P), Advance fee fraud(AKA Yahoo Yahoo) and other vices.
It also helps to reawaken the consciousness of the school management and teachers, parents, teachers and guardians and other relevant stakeholders so that they will not look down and take for granted those things that encourages safety and security of our schools and communities such as erection of a well structured school security post with adequate fencing of the school, installation of close circuit cameras at various designated points, emergency alarm amongst others and to ensure that those that are not supposed to be in school and community are there.
POCACOV is working with different stakeholders to ensure using these approaches: forum base, active base and community members base to constantly connect to the stakeholders and members of the public.
What is required at this juncture is constant and regular interface with members of the community and schools and strict adherence to the provisions of safer school community under the tenets of community oriented policing.
Members of the community and other relevant stakeholders are to join hands with the Nigeria police force through the police Campaign Against Cultism and Other Vices(POCACOV) in the ongoing campaign and move to promote school security and safety across the federation.
