Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said that extortionists should be dealt with an iron hand and that an effective strategy should be formulated for the elimination of street crime.
He said that modern technology should be used to curb crimes and that the process of computerising all police stations should be completed at the earliest. He said that Lahore should be made a role model for the eradication of crimes and solid measures should be taken for eliminating crimes in all other districts. Furthermore, Shahbaz said that a policy should be framed for making the province weapon-free. He added that the protection of life and property was the government’s top priority, adding that he would only be satisfied with the performance of the police when the people did so.
He was presiding over a high-level meeting at the Chief Minister’s Office. Federal Minister Saad Rafique, Provincial Ministers Rana Sanaullah Khan, Col (Retd) Shuja Khanzada, Chief Secretary, Home Secretary, IG, CCPO, Operations and Investigation DIG’s and senior officers concerned attended the meeting.
Addressing the meeting, Shahbaz said that all possible resources were provided to the police during the last five years but the desired results could not be achieved. He said that steps for equipping the police with the latest technology and for imparting training on modern lines were in process. Shahbaz added that although the menace of extortion in Punjab was negligible, yet a few individual cases had been reported in this regard. Furthermore, he said that this evil needed to be rooted out from society using modern technology. He said that law enforcement agencies needed to formulate a coordinated strategy to get rid of street crimes. He warned that no laxity or negligence in curbing crimes would be tolerated. Shahbaz also revealed that the performance of officers would be monitored regularly, adding that an anti-terrorism force was also being set up in the province for which the best officials would be selected and trained at the Elite Training School. He directed the authorities concerned that the process of recruitment of new sub-inspectors through the Punjab Public Service Commission should be completed at the earliest.
Shahbaz said that making the province weapon-free was of great importance for curbing crime. He directed the authorities concerned to immediately evolve a policy in this regard and to submit it in next meeting. He said that a formal approval of this policy would be taken from the cabinet and after its approval, it would be implemented vigorously. He said that the government was also pursuing the policy of good governance, merit and transparency. He said that patwar culture and corruption had been eliminated due to the land record project. Similarly, the use of modern technology should be ensured in police stations and the computerisation of all of Punjab’s police stations should be completed at the earliest, he added. Furthermore, he directed for the arrangement of foolproof security for the protection of foreigners working on various projects in Punjab.
Earlier, the Chief Secretary, Home Secretary and Inspector General (IG) gave detailed briefings with regard to the province’s law and order situation. The IG informed the attendants that 150 police stations had been computerised while the process of computerisation of the remaining police stations was ongoing. The CCPO added that 12 personnel of five gangs involved in extortion had been arrested.
