Police graduates 4,000 constables

At least 4,000 police recruits are to graduate from four police colleges this week as the government strives to boost numbers of its grossly under strength national force, ‘The Guardian’ newspaper reported on Monday. The recruits have already been posted to their units. The police has trained 8,000 constables since January 1999, when the six-year embargo on recruitment was lifted, the newspaper said. The government plans to continue its massive recruitment drive to meet the United Nations ratio of one policeman to 400 persons. Presently, Nigeria has one policeman to 1,000 people.

An overstretched, poorly motivated police force and an increase in violent crime have led some local politicians, such as the governor of Lagos State, to call on lawmakers to allow states to set up their own forces.