It’s Not Military’s Job To Go After Bandits – Retired General Williams

A former Chairman of Transparency International Nigeria and ex Chief of Army Operations, Training and Plans, Major General Ishola Williams (retd), said the job of the military was not to go after bandits. Rather, he said fight against bandits was the duty of the Mobile Police(MOPOL), the paramilitary arm of the Nigeria Police Force designated to take over operations of major crisis where conventional police units cannot cope. “It’s not the job of the military to run after criminals. The military was created to run after insurgents. It is wrong to be using the military in cases of banditry,” williams said. The retired general said sending the military after bandits would make the military lose focus. “The military should focus on insurgency and leave MOPOL to do their job.”

Williams also canvassed the separation of the paramilitary police from the police service adding that it should be independent of the Inspector General of Police. “A commander should head MOPOL. This is what is done in other countries. The MOPOL should be independent of the IG and report only to the Minister of Internal Security. “The President can make this happen. All he needs to do is to state that he wants to separate the paramilitary police from the police service. He will draft a bill and pass it to the Nation’s Assembly and once the latter passes it, that’s all.”