Govt presents N7.5bn vehicles, medical equipment to police

THE Federal Government has donated 200 Buffalo trucks, bulletproof vests, protective helmets, drugs, and medical equipment valued at N7.5bn to the Nigeria Police Force to aid policing in the country.

The items, which were procured by the Nigeria Police Trust Fund, were handed over to the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, by the Minister of Police Affairs, Muhammad Dingyadi, at the Force headquarters, Abuja, on Thursday.

The minister, who represented the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), congratulated the NPTF for executing the projects which were contained in the 2020 budget in line with the regime’s mandate to deepen security and safety nationwide.

He said, “In this connection, let me also applaud the initiative to select this brand of Buffalo trucks which are adjudged rugged and capable of withstanding varied geographical terrains and atmospheric conditions.

“The establishment of the Nigeria Police Trust Fund is very timely and apt, as it came at a time when the government is determined more than ever before to holistically address the various security challenges confronting our great country, Nigeria”.

Buhari said his regime was poised to give all that is necessary to the trust fund to enable it to meet its mandate and attain the expectations of the police and Nigerians in general.

According to him, achieving the overall objectives of the trust fund should be internalised as the collective aspiration of all Nigerians in order to bridge the funding gap in policing by providing the NPF with required operational tools, equipment, training, and re-training of personnel as well as the motivation of officers and men through improved welfare.

The President urged the police to continue putting in their best in the discharge of their duties and to adopt a holistic internal security mechanism in the country.

The IG appreciated the Federal Government’s firm determination to pursue one of the three cardinal objectives of protection of lives and properties which led to the setting up of the NPTF to provide finance, logistics, and other critical intervention to the police.

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