In a new command structure arrangement in the Nigeria Police, the Force Intelligence Bureau (FIB) has been formally excised from the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID).
It is henceforth to become a full-fledged department to be headed by a Deputy Inspector-General of Police (DIG).
This follows a re-organisation of departments of the Force by President Muhammadu Buhari, who also approved the creation of five zonal commands for the Force.
The five newly created commands are Ondo/Ekiti command with headquarters at Akure, Ondo State and Enugu/Anambra/Ebonyi Command with headquarters in Ukpo-Dunukofia in Anambra State.
Others are Bayelsa/Rivers command with headquarters in Yenogoa, Bayelsa State; Katsina,/Kaduna command with headquarters in Katsina; Yobe/Borno command with headquarters in Maiduguri, Borno State.
According to the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Adamu, the new structure is expected to fully integrate intelligence-led policing strategy and community policing.
He said the approval of the decentralization of the FCID is in line with the principle of community policing.
Two additional annex offices of the department are to be established in Enugu to take care of investigations of major crimes emanating from the South-east and South-south geopolitical zones, while the second in Gombe State would take care of investigations from the North-east geo-political zone.
The new annex offices are in addition to the existing anex offices in Lagos and Kaduna, while the FCID annex offices in Lagos, Kaduna, Enugu and Gombe states would be headed by Assistant Inspectors-General of Police (AIGs). They are to report to the DIGs in charge of the FCID, at the Force Headquarters Abuja.
The president also approved a new structure for the four police colleges in the country located in Kaduna, Ikeja, Maiduguri and Orji-River, to enhance training and capacity development of the junior cadre of the Force.
Also approved was the status of the commandants of the colleges be upgraded to the rank of Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) and this will strengthen administration, enhance the commitment of staff and engender a higher level of discipline and the quality of training at the colleges.
The approvals were granted in order to expand and strengthen the intelligence department towards driving the intelligence-led policing strategy of the force leadership and to aid in the entrenchment of the community policing practice as approved by the federal government, it was gathered.