The Nigerian police are launching a mobile app which would help in its fight against the rising crime wave in the country.

Over 35 people were killed nationwide last week, as Nigerians continue to grabble with insecurity, alongside the insurgency.

The app, called police-VGS, is in its test-running stage, the police said on Saturday via Twitter.

The police said that the app would help citizens do quick reporting of crimes like kidnapping, rape and domestic violence, etc.

The app would be helpful even where there is communal unrest, the police said in the video.

“Within five seconds of reporting, the appropriate government security or emergency agency gets alerted and help would be deployed,” the video claims.

READ ALSO: Member narrates how pastor lured him to ritualist den but got killed instead

All a user has to do is to “swipe” the police-VGS app on his mobile phone when a crime, fire, medical emergency or natural disaster occur. The “policemen would then be alerted immediately and help would be sent your way promptly”.

The app would be available on IOS and Google play store.

Reactions to the app

Some Nigerians however have been visiting the Google play store for the app which has not been released yet.

One Nigerian who gave his name as Peter Osagie said he downloaded a similar security app called Smart Police while he was searching for the Police-VGS app.

“It is only in this country that you advertised what is not there. After referring people to so-called app, it could not be found,” said another Nigerian, Ibrahim Yunusa, who stumbled on the Smart Police app, while also searching for the Police-VGS app.

“The Nigeria Police has devised this app to smartly combat crimes in the country.

“It will soon be formally launched by the IGP and thereafter made available for public use,” the police said on Twitter, using its official handle @PoliceNG.

A lucky church member has revealed how he escaped from a ritualist den where his pastor had lured him to in Osun state.

The man, Sola Adebayo, who claimed to have been close to the pastor, Emmanuel Ogedengbe, explained that he told him they were going to a prayer mountain in Oshogbo area of Osun State.

Although Ogedengbe’s church, the Cherubim and Seraphim Church, was situated in Ibadan, Adebayo agreed to accompany him on the journey because of the respect he had for him.

How it happened

After driving him in his car to Oshogbo, Adeboye explained how the pastor took him to a herbalist abode instead, claiming they were his associates.

Luckily, he was able to sense danger when his pastor did not return many hours after he was taken out of the room.

Adeboye had to pretend he needed to fuel his car in a bid to escape.

While narrating his ordeal to policemen he contacted after his scary experience, he said, “When he (Pastor Ogedengbe) told me to follow him to Osogbo for prayers, I couldn’t turn him down because he was someone I respected so much. But when we got to Osogbo, he changed the story and when I was extremely inquisitive, he said where we were going was a town before Ikirun”, Adebayo narrated.

“It was when we got to Oba-Ile that I realized we had come to a herbalist’s house and I immediately asked him what we were doing there.

READ ALSO: Nigerian police prepare app to fight rise in violent crimes

“I was told that our hosts were his friends and that they had been friends for about eight years.

“Minutes later, I was told to wait and our hosts left with Pastor Ogedengbe and it was when I started calling his telephone number without response that I started having a second thought. “But about an hour later, the oldest among our hosts-turned-ritualists came back and asked me to follow him.

“They had asked me immediately we got to the house to eat some concoction which I refused to eat.

“Now when this old man asked me to follow him alongside one hefty guy to where the pastor was, I asked about pastor’s whereabouts. The old man simply told me that he was fine and that he was praying at the holy ground.

“All along, I felt something fishy was going on and, when we got to a place inside the bush, I asked for my car keys which they had earlier taken from me, pretending that I wanted to pick something from the car.

“But to my surprise, the old man refused to give me the keys.

“It was after some minutes of argument that he released the keys and asked this stern looking guy to follow me.

Escape Plan

“Once we got to the car, I requested the gang member who followed me, to follow me to a filling station to buy fuel into the car since we will be traveling late in the night. And it was from the filling station that I escaped.

“I was chased on three motorcycles till I got to Osogbo-Ikirun expressway before they went back and I rushed to the nearest police station”.

The suspects were subsequently nabbed after the tip off while Pastor Ogedengbe’s dismembered body parts were found in their possession.

• 

  Going forward into the next term, I will submit that there is scope for improvement in some

  areas. I will enumerate a few for the benefit of the citizens in particular and the country at large.

  1. TRANSPARENCY

  Nigerians yearn for information and also need to know, and in most cases want to be

  able to see what the administration is doing in areas that concerns the public, especially

  at some very crucial times. I will expect that there is frequent information dissemination

  about the schemes that the government puts in place for the public. It will be a great idea

  for President Buhari and/or the Vice President to use the broadcasting media to speak

  out, and be listened to by the population directly via Television channels on important

  initiatives and at any unfortunate times when tragic events occur in any part of the

  country.

  2. CABINET AND CIVIL SERVICE REVIEW

  I would be expecting the new cabinet to include more young people, women, and men of

  proven integrity. I also think that it is prudent for the President to match people with

  portfolios that match the cabinet member’s experience, knowledge and skills.

  Something like a round peg in a round hole.

  3. JOB CREATION / ENERGY SUPPLY

  In view of the large number of youths unemployed and underemployed I expect the

  administration to implement job creation schemes. Finally, more should be done to

  improve the erratic power supply. With good power supply, businesses can thrive

  leading directly to employment opportunities within the private sector and ultimately the

  desired economic growth to lift the masses out of poverty.

  By Tokunbo Olusola Fajuyitan

  Legal Practitioner and Public Affairs Analyst.

  Tel: +234 (0) 810 579 6080

  Email: toksconsult@yahoo.co.uk

  May 2019