IG: 27 Missing Policemen Yet to be Declared Dead

Twenty-seven policemen declared missing after terrorists attacked Gwoza in Borno State in August, 2014, are yet to be declared dead, Inspector-General of Police (IG), Mr. Solomon Arase, said yesterday.

Arase disclosed this while responding to questions from newsmen afterinaugurating the Board of Directors of the Nigeria Police Property Development and Construction Company Limited. (NIPPDCC).

The IG explained that the police would follow its tradition of declaring officers who are declared missing in battle dead after a period has lapsed which he declined to give, reported the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

“About our colleagues, who are missing in Gwoza, there is a tradition in the police force. When officers are missing in battle, we do not declare them dead or missing until after a period has lapsed.

“So we are still waiting for that period to lapse, and if we do not find them after that time, then we will formally declare them either dead or missing,” Arase said.

Thirty-five policemen were declared missing in August last year after Boko Haram insurgents attacked a police training school in Gwoza.
A few days after the attack on the college, Police spokesman, CP Emmanuel Ojukwu, said eight of them had been found, leaving 27 still missing.

He had said that the police management was passionate about the welfare of its inspectors, rank and file, who were mostly operational personnel.

Arase stressed that the welfare of those categories of personnel needed to be given priority to ensure that corruption is stamped out of the force.

He announced that 36,000 of them would by next week proceed on training that would lead to their promotion to the next rank.
“We have a social contract with our inspectors, rank and file,” he said.

The seven-man NIPPDCC board is chaired by the IG, who penultimate week had mandated the Police Works Department to build 6,000 units of modern houses for its personnel.
Five hundred units of the houses are to be located in each of the 12 police zonal commands across the country.