Kakar stresses change in attitude to improve police force image

ISLAMABAD: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Saturday acclaimed the contributions and sacrifices of the police force for maintaining law and order in the country and emphasised that the basic requirement was a change in attitude to improve the image of police force.

He was addressing the 7th annual conference of former Inspector Generals of Police on Saturday. The event was organised by the Association of Former Inspectors General of Police.

Expressing his appreciation for the police force for maintaining internal order, Kakar said that it was a sacrosanct duty, adding that no society could afford chaos as anarchy was unacceptable. He said the police force was the custodian to protect them from that anarchy and had been serving as the frontline force from sepoy to officer to protect the society.

While referring to the functioning of the force, the caretaker prime minister suggested that they required deep introspection as to how to improve the situation and image of the force.

“Changes can come with change in attitude and not by mere changing the uniform,” he averred.

Praising the sacrifices of police force, Kakar said that they owed a lot for this force and particularly referred to the sacrifices of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan police besides other provinces.

Recollecting the sacrifice of Shaheed Commandant FC and IGP KP Safwat Ghayur, he said that he had hardly seen an iconic figure like Safwat in the country. “If he had been alive, he would have been my leader and I would have been his follower.”

He observed that two noble professions in the country were mistreated, including nursing and police, adding that they needed to rebrand them by providing resources and infusing confidence in them.

That brand was more important indicating that self-esteem associated for doing any sort of job was significant, he added.

He said the police force cleaned the filth and dirt from society and were the chosen and noble ones as they were protecting their children.

The interim prime minister said that they needed to address the issues which led problems of mistreatment of police force.

He narrated the issues faced by two families of martyred police officials who had approached him and regretted that they were not treated in the manner they deserved and also cited Shabana, a police personnel martyred in Swat.

He also emphasised upon the need to understand the local challenges and discourse over the effective legal framework.

He said about 90,000 people had been killed in the country in the fight against terrorism and highlighted the importance of effective legislation to counter the security issues.

He said that with a state of confusion, you ought to falter and fail, and clarity in carrying out any business was important.

The caretaker prime minister also suggested strengthening of institutional bondage within the police force and further increasing welfare programmes for the force.

Earlier, former IGP Kaleem Imam said that the association was formed in 2015 with 250 members. A total of 7,800 personnel laid down their lives for the peace and security of the country. About 15 allied departments of the police force were serving the people, he added.

Other speakers said that rapid changes of security posed a challenge for the police force. Terrorism was posing an existential threat, which should be countered by utilising the latest technology.