Tensions dissolved into constructive dialogue at the Kogi State Police Command Headquarters in Lokoja on Wednesday when members of the public, civil society groups, and community leaders confronted top police officers with raw grievances during an unprecedented interactive stakeholder session organized to mark the 2026 Customer Service Week.
The high-stakes engagement provided a rare public platform for Civil Society Organisations, representatives of the Police Community Relations Committee, religious bodies, and local leaders from across the state to directly interrogate policing standards, voice long-standing complaints, and demand greater accountability from men of the command.
In an open and uninhibited forum, participants laid bare their daily experiences with officers on duty, evaluating service delivery across various divisions, pointing out systemic lapses, and putting forward concrete recommendations aimed at reforming police-citizen relations within the confluence state.
Responding to the heated yet candid feedback, the Commissioner of Police, Kogi State Command, CP Naziru Bello Kankarofi, welcomed the frank assessments and pledged that all legitimate grievances raised would be swiftly addressed. He declared that true customer service in the force lies in the manner officers receive, listen to, and handle members of the public, insisting that professionalism, courtesy, fairness, and unwavering respect for human dignity must define every police interaction moving forward.
CP Kankarofi urged citizens to actively utilize the dedicated channels of the Police SERVICOM Unit to report misconduct and service failures, reinforcing the command’s commitment to internal discipline and transparency.
Strengthened by the rare transparency, stakeholders urged the command to decentralize and institutionalize these town hall-style engagements on a regular basis to bridge the trust deficit between law enforcement and the populace.
In a statement confirming the success of the initiative, the Police Public Relations Officer of the Command, ASP Saliu Oyiza Afusat, expressed gratitude to all participants for their bold contributions, reiterating the command’s resolve to drive a responsive, professional, and genuinely people-centred policing model across Kogi State.
