Police officers in northern Bahr el-Ghazal State have been hailed for upholding peace and stability in the area.

The officers were honoured in an event which was organised by the state police commissioners on Tuesday to celebrate the contribution of the police forces in maintaining peace in the Northern Bahr el-Ghazal State.

“The commissioner decided to celebrate their achievement by calling them for a meal [for a word of thank you],” said Guot Guot, Aweil Police Spokesperson.

“This would help them raise their morale to exert more effort to protect the civilians,” he said.

Guot attributed the prevailing peace to efforts by the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC), which he believes has established “unshakable confidence” between the police and civilians.

“We arrested the top criminal gangs with their guns and equipment that they used to loot and terrorise the residents,” Guot said.

“Previously, they used to attack residential areas and had become a problem to the society but this has reduced, ” he stated.

The police acknowledged that the status of Northern Bahr el-Ghazal was more stable and that tremendous public awareness had increased.

Guot said police sensitise citizens about different sorts of crimes during the awareness sessions. He said the aim is to inform the citizens about the threats of the criminals and how they affect the state.

Northern Bahr el-Ghazal has been divided into around 40 security zones as part of a crime prevention initiative. Each zone is two to four kilometres apart.

Guot said the zones need to be outfitted with Motorola devices and that mobility remains a concern, and they have two vehicles to patrol the whole area at night.

“All our forces have been directed on foot patrol to make sure that slum areas and all roads not accessible by vehicles are patrolled on foot,” he said.

“Our aim as police in Northern Bahr el-Ghazal State [is that] we want every citizen to go where they want, whenever they want, any time without any hindrance,” Guot stressed.

The police spokesperson commended the citizens for cooperating with the police to restore peace and stability in the state.

“The citizens need peace and the police need peace, that is why we are standing together,” said Guot.