Mozambique: Police must not be in the new “for the wrong reasons” – AIM

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Mozambique: Police must not be in the new “for the wrong reasons” – AIM

9:23 CAT | 06 Jan 2021

File photo: Noticias

The general commander of the Mozambican police force, Bernadino Rafael, warned police officers that, in the coming year, he does not want to see the police making headlines for the wrong reasons.

Speaking in the northern city of Nampula on New Year’s Eve, at a police graduation ceremony, Rafael said he will not tolerate policemen undertaking criminal activities. He added that, in 2020, 326 policemen were expelled from the force because they had committed crimes.

“It saddens me when crimes are committed by members of the police”, he said. “Let this behaviour change in 2021! The police should bring us news about crime in their community, and should not increase the level of crime”.

But he warned “we shall continue to purify our ranks of those who are not able to march alongside us”.

“Let us make 2021 a better year for Mozambicans”, he urged. “It is not good that we, wearing this uniform, enter into the world of crime”.

The secret in reducing levels of crime, Rafael argued, lay with members of the public “since they have all the information about what is happening in the communities”.

“Guard and protect your sources”, he urged. “A policeman is valuable when he is informed, because it is information that leads us to good operational results”. He suggested that his subordinates should “open up the police stations and hold police-community liaison meetings”.

There were 360 policemen in Nampula province who stood out in complying with their duties in 2020. “We have 360 members of the police force who have done a good job, and some of them have been awarded higher ranks”, said Rafael.

They should “serve as an example of how to behave well with the community, which is an obligation of our police”, he declared.

Source: AIM