The Chairman of the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC), Ogun State Command, Comrade Abdullah Babatunde Lawal, has called on residents of the state to embrace community policing and support security agencies in the fight against crime, saying security is a collective responsibility that requires the active participation of every citizen. He noted that the PCRC has continued to strengthen the relationship between the Nigeria Police Force and communities through intelligence gathering, public enlightenment and grassroots engagement.
Speaking during an interview with NSTV International, Lawal said the PCRC, established in 1984, was created to foster harmonious relations between the police and members of the public. He explained that the committee regularly trains and retrains its members across the 16 Area Commands and over 80 Police Divisions in Ogun State, while sustaining campaigns to educate residents that the police remain their partners in maintaining peace and security.
The Ogun PCRC chairman commended the Ogun State Police Command and other security agencies for their collaborative efforts in reducing kidnapping, cultism, drug abuse and other criminal activities across the state. He said the committee comprises respected professionals, retirees, traditional rulers, farmers, youths and other law-abiding citizens who voluntarily support the police through intelligence gathering, public sensitisation and community policing initiatives.
Lawal, however, identified the porous borders around Ogun State as one of the major security challenges confronting the state, warning that the uncontrolled movement of undocumented persons into border communities has contributed to banditry and attacks on farmers. He urged residents, particularly traders and transporters, not to knowingly provide food, drinks or logistics to suspected criminals, stressing that such actions amount to aiding criminality.
The PCRC chairman also renewed the committee's advocacy for the "See Something, Say Something" campaign, urging parents to closely monitor their children and discourage them from drug abuse, cultism and other social vices. According to him, many criminal activities begin within families before spreading to schools, markets and the wider society, making parental guidance essential to tackling insecurity.
Lawal further expressed support for the establishment of state police, saying locally recruited officers would have better knowledge of the terrain, language and culture required for effective intelligence gathering and crime prevention. He urged Nigerians to continue supporting the Nigeria Police Force and other security agencies, maintaining that lasting peace and security can only be achieved through collective responsibility and sustained community participation.
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