Pulling Out Parade: Officers, Govt hail CP Oqua Etim over service in Gombe
…..Etim canvasses for more funding, to make policing easier
….says 85 % security issues to be tackled with adequate funding
Outgoing Gombe State Commissioner of Police, Oqua Etim, on Tuesday, said policing is easy when there is funding, decrying paucity of funds as cause of its output.
He made this disclosure in an interview with journalists while fielding answers to question on how the command was able to rescue two kidnap victims barely one week after they were abducted at Shabewa community of Dukku, days to Etim’s exit.
He said, “The criminals called the family of their victims to say whatever they have even if it’s N2m they should bring. The abductors had to allow the people to go without ransom because they were now at risk of being found. Policing is easy, the major problem is funding. If Nigerian Police is well funded I don’t think whether we won’t be able to conquer 85 per cent of our problems in this country.
“Now to fuel the vehicle, how many litres of fuel can government give you a day, funding is the problem. Just like your job if you are not given good cameras, good recorders, good vehicles to move around with and taken good care of, how will you function.”
On his most challenging time as Commissioner, Etim described the viral news on the alleged burning of the gubernatorial candidate of Peoples Democratic Party Jibrin Barde’s campaign as his most traumatising period, “this faithful morning, I was just few weeks old as CP when the campaign office of PDP gubernatorial candidate was touched, what woke me up was that PDP campaign office was on fire. I said to myself so this is how my career is going to end because it was a baptism of fire as i received calls from everywhere, but the detective in me said no you can’t accept a defeat. I drove myself to the office, got to the scene made up my mind, knew what could have happened went to my house and I mustered enough courage and suddenly my squad mate, the then Deputy Inspector General of Operations late Mustapha called me Etim, where are you I said I’m in Gombe, and then they vandalised and burnt down PDP campaign office and i said that is a lie. I said as I’m talking to you am driving to the scene again this time since it’s daylight I will be able to move around and see exactly what happened. As at this time I didn’t know there were policemen there, what did they do when people came to vandalise the place, how come the gubernatorial candidate has pictures real-time of the fire incidence, so the person that captured was waiting for them to set the fire on the banners/billboards, nobody touched their office, i didn’t see the people that were said to have sustained injuries but it was something that rattled me,” he said.
While noting that the menace of Kalare boys was a scourge that he would want the incoming Commissioner to tackle head on, “Menace of Kalare boys and abuse of drugs. Kidnapping is domesticated you know the Fulani’s reside in their rugas, so if you are in the ruga, they know when you went to the ruga to sell your cow, you have money. Once you pay the ransom they want they will set your wife, daughters free and where it happens is not where you have patrols but in the hinterlands and they don’t report to the police,” he added.
He added, “A situation where everybody knows how to make children is a right to have children and not a right to train them it’s difficult to manage. No matter how good you are as a government like the governor is hoping to reequip technical schools, skill acquisition centres where these children will be engaged now that the Kolmani oilfield will soon start exploration they won’t have to go to China to get artisans, there will be training for the youths to feat into the mandate of oil exploration.”
Earlier, at the pulling out ceremony organised for Etim at the Pantami Stadium, Gombe State Governor Muhammadu Yahaya, who was represented by Deputy Governor Manassah Jatau, commended the outing Commissioner of Police for stabilising security architecture in the state.
Yahaya noted that Etim contributed immensely to ensuring peace and security in the state, adding that government would still reach out to him for guidance.
