By Frank Momoh
There is no doubt that these are acutely challenging times for Nigerian Police Force and the other security outfits. The North-central, North-east and several other parts of the country have become the epicentres for all forms of criminalities with daily occurrences of ritual killings, kidnappings and armed banditry to say the least.
On Monday, the Abuja-Kaduna rail track came under heavy bomb blast resulting in humongous devastation that the country is yet to recover from even as many passengers are said to be held by the terrorists after the blast in adjacent forest.
Towards curtailing these horrible vices in the bud, the Inspector-General of Police (IG) Mr. Usman Alkali Baba, has acquired 5 additional high-powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to boost its operations.
Nigerians are waiting whether the acquisition of these security devices will make any difference in the midst of overwhelming security challenges across the country.
The Acting Public Relations Officer, Force Headquarters, Abuja, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, in a statement made available to Journalists, said the acquisition will help improve surveillance operations to checkmate criminal activities in the country.
According to him, the acquisition is the manifestation of the IG’s determination to integrate the use of innovative technology in the law enforcement duties of the Nigeria Police Force and ultimately enhance its intelligence gathering and operational capabilities.
The drones will assist the Police in monitoring active crime scenes, coordinating response operations, and providing aerial support to responding officers.
The UAVs include an ALTI Transition, capable of covering up to 150km in a single flight with high endurance of up to 14 hours, and an Elistair Orion fixed-wing aircraft, capable of covering up to 92m altitude with high endurance of up to 50 hours and other sensitive and forensic-based features.
These UAVs will be remotely operated by police pilots from the Police Airwing who have undergone specialized training from Engineers of the Elistair company, who were flown in from France at the instance of the IGP, for a week-long training schedule, and have acquired technical skills and requisite know-how in the operation and maintenance of the procured UAVs.
The IGP has however directed the immediate, adequate, and strategic deployment of these drones to areas prone to high-security breaches, for monitoring and intelligence gathering to tackle criminality headlong.
The Inspector-General of Police has further reiterated the firm determination of the Police leadership to continue to explore avenues to enhance police intelligence-gathering capabilities and engage the application of cutting-edge technology in the fight against crime and criminality while seeking full cooperation from members of the public on intelligence gathering and vigilance.