The Coalition of Civil Society Organisations for Good Governance, Thursday, honoured the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Baba, with an award of Grand Defender of Democracy in recognition of his sterling leadership; improvement in the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), particularly with regards to human rights compliance and discipline, under his leadedship.
The coalition, comprising leaders of 37 pro-democracy and civil society organisations, conferred the honour on the IGP during a solidarity visit to the Louis Edet House, Force Head Quarters, Abuja.
Speaking before conferring the Award on the IGP, Leader of the Delegation, Comrade Femi Lawson, expressed satisfaction with recent policing strategies employed by the IGP, especially with regards to the just concluded 2023 general elections.
The group applauded the effective leadership qualities of the IGP which has led to an unprecedented improvement in the Nigeria Police Force, particularly with regards to human rights compliance, discipline, welfare, infrastructural transformation, decent, and secure electoral process in Nigeria.
Lawson noted that the visit was a diversion from the history of confrontation between the Force and the civil societies which was previously at thr point of barricades during protests.
According to Lawson, some CSOs on his delegation have participated in four to five election circles and have acknowledged that the situation was different under IGP Baba, who has successfully enforced policing with integrity and humanity in line with international best practices.
Responding, the police boss dedicated the award to the police management theme and all officers and men of the NPF. He appreciated the group’s efforts targeted at deepening democracy within the country. He reiterated the commitment of the Nigeria Police Force to continuous improvement of security networking and the general safety of the country.