Ogun State Police Command has intensified its non-kinetic crime prevention efforts through youth sensitisation, academic advocacy and community engagement.
This is in line with the strategic directives of the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu, psc(+), NPM, on intelligence-led and community-driven policing.
Under the leadership of the Commissioner of Police, CP Bode Ojajuni, psc, FCSS, MNIPR, the Command recently held two major public sensitisation engagements aimed at discouraging youths from cultism, substance abuse, cybercrime and other social vices.
At the 8th Set Academic Seminar of the Mass Communication Department, Al-Hikmah University, Abeokuta Study Centre, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Oluseyi Babaseyi, delivered a paper titled, “Substance Abuse and National Insecurity: Building Responsible Youth Through Entrepreneurship.”
Speaking to lecturers, media stakeholders and undergraduate students, Babaseyi highlighted the connection between substance abuse and violent crimes, including cultism, armed robbery and cybercrime.
He urged students to embrace entrepreneurship as both an economic empowerment tool and a strategy for preventing crime, while stressing the important role of media practitioners in promoting responsible public discourse.
In a separate engagement, the Ogun State chapter of the Police Campaign Against Cultism and Other Vices, POCACOV, led by the State Coordinator and Deputy PPRO, ASP Opeyemi Oluborode, partnered with the Peace Club Abeokuta, affiliated with the World Peace Initiative Foundation, for the “Better Me Tournament.”
The programme brought together undergraduate students from Olabisi Onabanjo University, the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta and other tertiary institutions across the state.
The POCACOV team used the occasion to sensitise the participants on self-discipline, personal leadership, the dangers of gang involvement and other social vices.
The Ogun State Police Command said while enforcement operations against criminal elements remain ongoing, preventive education and value orientation are critical to achieving sustainable solutions to youth-related crime.
The Command called on academic institutions, civil society organisations, parents and community leaders to collaborate with the police in guiding young people towards productive and responsible lifestyles.