Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu has said the Police Mobile Force will be central to efforts against banditry and insurgency across the country.

Disu spoke on Saturday while opening a trainers’ course at the Police Mobile Force Training College, Ende Hills, in Nasarawa State. He said President Bola Tinubu had directed service chiefs to restore peace and that the Mobile Police’s readiness would largely determine success.

He told participants that Mobile Police officers have specialised training for such operations and that the nation was depending on them. The force, he said, has been expanded to 84 squadrons as part of efforts to meet a more complex security environment.

Disu called for a Mobile Force that combined discipline with speed and respect for human rights. He said the trainers’ course was meant to ensure squadrons were properly trained, led and equipped.

AIG Francis Idu, who oversees the Mobile Police, said units had been recalled from field deployments for retraining after months of operations. Commandant Sunday Peter said 450 of 750 identified instructors were taking part in the first phase of the programme.