Hayatu Usman, Commissioner of Police, Gombe State Command, has expressed his willingness to partner with journalists in the state to ensure a crime-free society.

Mr Usman made the call on Wednesday when he paid a courtesy visit to members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Gombe State Council at the Correspondents’ Chapel in Gombe.

He said the partnership with the journalists was necessary to sustain the prevailing peace in the state.

According to him, the media is a critical partner in the fight against crime and criminality.

While chatting with journalists, the police boss said peace remained a shared responsibility; hence, he had been visiting relevant stakeholders, such as traditional, religious and community leaders, to ensure collective efforts in fighting crime.

“Since my assumption, I have been engaging key stakeholders because I believe fighting criminality is something that requires collective efforts by all stakeholders.

“Today, we have been able to strengthen our community policing strategies and incorporate a community-based approach to addressing crime, and it is working for us.

“I am here to meet with journalists because I believe you all are our critical partners and without you, we can’t go anywhere.

“So, I would like to appreciate your support because it is through this effort that members of the public understand what we are doing,” he said.

On efforts by the command to sustain the prevailing peace in the state, Mr Usman said his command had devised strategies to ensure that Gombe remained safe and peaceful in spite of pockets of security challenges in the country.

On the recently conducted police screening in the state, the commissioner said 17,493 applicants were shortlisted, and out of that,12,503 were screened, while 4,990 didn’t show up for screening.

Mr Usman appealed to members of the public to support the command by providing vital information that would assist the police in effectively tackling crime in the state.

On his part, Saidu Malala, NUJ chairman in the state, commended the commissioner for engaging critical stakeholders in the interest of the safety of all citizens.

Mr Malala assured the police boss of media support to ensure that the command succeeded in its mandate of fighting crimes and criminality.

Also speaking, Hajara Leman, the chairperson of the correspondents’ chapel, commended the commissioner for being media-friendly.

(NAN)