KAMPALA — The Inspector General of Police — IGP Martins Okoth Ochola has in his Christmas message asked the public to remain mindful about opportunistic criminal who would wish to take advantage of the slightest opportunity to commit crimes in the festive season.
IGP Ochola said so far, the festive month of December, is still generally peaceful, simply because police has countered and disrupted the advance preparations of criminals, early enough.
These and many positive results, he says were entirely due to the collaborative and strategic alliances the force has made with other sister security agencies, like the UPDF, CMI, ISO, ESO and other partners under the Criminal Justice System .
Giving the full accountability on police side, the IGP says the year has been full of challenges and competing demands on crime and safety.
He said police registered selected incidents of violent crimes, which had created fear in the public, but “we worked tirelessly throughout the year, after adopting several strategies and initiatives that helped crack down on the violent crimes of murder by shooting, aggravated robberies and kidnappings to mention a few.”
Some of these strategies he says included an expansive crime prevention initiative; response effectiveness through community outreaches; crime mapping and data collection; efficient resource allocation; hotspot policing where violent crime is concentrated; problem oriented policing, use of new technologies like CCTV surveillance, DNA fingerprinting of guns, and automated fingerprint analysis.
“We also made improvements on how we conduct intelligence and investigations; recruited more police officers to enhance our manpower intensive practices like patrols and visibility; and also profiling and pursuing known repeat criminals,” he notes revealing the force plans to continue with its operational activities in the New-year, with a focus on serious and dangerous criminals, who undermine the safety of Ugandans.
Ochola says police’s intensified operations in the third quarter of this year ensured that very dangerous suspects who were behind the violent murders of boda-boda riders, mobile money dealers and innocent civilians were arrested and charged to court.
He adds police also conducted sting operations to tackle the growing problem of dealers in suspected stolen properties, particularly, of mobile phones, other electronic gadgets, motorcycles and thefts of utilities like pylons, cables and pipes.
