Hundreds of new mobile units for police

The Nigerian police force is to create hundreds of new mobile squadrons as part of its efforts to effectively combat crime, religious and political upheavals in the country, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Haz Lwendi, said on Tuesday. Iwendi said that recent political crises and violence in some parts of the country were a curtain raiser on events that could unfold in the run-up to elections in 2003, the Lagos-based Guardian newspaper reported him as saying. The Inspector-General of Police, Tafa Balogun, has ordered an increase in the number of mobile police units from the current 45 to 900, Lwendi said, adding that Balogun believed them to be an important element of the government strategy to fight crime. Balogun has also ordered close monitoring of police officers working within the anti-crime squads to try to prevent extortion and other corrupt practices. Around 100 police officers are currently facing different charges at state commands across the country, The Guardian reported.