Police recruitment: Successful candidates to begin training September

Musiliu Smith, chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC), says candidates who emerge successful at the end of the ongoing police recruitment exercise will commence training in two months.

Smith announced this on Tuesday in Akure, Ondo capital, while addressing journalists at the state police command.

The commission had commenced the screening of 210,150 shortlisted candidates for recruitment into the constable cadre of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) on July 1.

The exercise is expected to last till July 28.

Smith said that the screening exercise adopted the same standard procedure all over the country.

“This is the first time we are doing very intensive screening of the people we want to bring into the force in the country,” Smith said.

“So, this is the beginning of the process and I am sure within the next two months, we shall be ready for those shortlisted to report to the police college for training.”

He explained that with the recruitment, the shortage of police personnel would be minimal.

According to him, the exercise has been very transparent and personnel from the commission as well as senior officers representing the inspector general of police are involved in all the states.

“We cannot leave everything to the command alone,” he said.

“We are using their facilities and their people, especially the medical team which is supporting us.

“So far, the exercise is going on very well.

“Though 10,000 is not enough, but you have to start somewhere and the shortage of police personnel which the public always complain of will soon be something of the past.”