SSP Kiani gets rousing send-off

Rank and file celebrate as outgoing boss suspends all show cause notices against officers

ISLAMABAD: With a shower of rose petals and selfies with officers, Islamabad Police on Friday bid adieu to SSP-Operations Sajid Kiani.

Kiani, a basic pay scale (BPS) -19 police officer, has been transferred from the capital police to the Intelligence Bureau on Thursday by the federal government.

Spending his last day at the Islamabad Police on Friday, where he had served for nearly a decade, Kiani was swamped in attending farewell ‘calls’ and interactions with his colleagues.

“I have served in the Islamabad Police for nine years, eight months, and two days,” the officer told policemen at the National Library auditorium on Friday afternoon, adding that he had worked as “SSP-Operations for two years, seven months and nine days.”

He boasted that he had the second-longest tenure of an SSP-Operation in the capital police’s history. The first one who lasted this long, he said, had served over three decades ago.

He apologised to his subordinates if he was ever harsh or strict with any of them.

“If I was harsh and tough, it was not for myself but for the job. I apologise if anybody is hurt,” said Kiani, as he gestured to an album of faces in the crowd who nodded in acknowledgement.

Kiani pointed out one cop in particular for good work. “Officers like inspector Rukhsar Mehdi are an asset for the force,” he said.

The outgoing SSP-operations also recalled the achievements of the police during his tenure as SSP-Operations.

“Over the last three years, we have reduced crime in the capital, apart from the successful handling of countless protests and processions,” he claimed. “This is teamwork; no one man can do this,” he added.

Kiani also reflected on the difficult nature of their jobs.

“Police are often taken for granted. Good work by police is rarely appreciated but everybody will note if you do not perform,” he said and advised urged them to be sympathetic towards the public.

“Use this uniform to help others. This power, authority, and life are temporary, only the good deeds you do will survive,” he said and promised that he will remain accessible to all the officers in his new job.

The policemen enthusiastically welcomed the announcement that all show cause notices he had issued to policemen had been disposed of.

Meanwhile, officers of the force believe that sooner or later, Kiani will return to capital police.

“If we go by the history, officers who stay in Islamabad Police for a long period, one day return to the force. Incumbent Inspector General Sultan Azam Temuri and DIG Mirvais Niaz are recent examples,” said an officer.

He added that SSP Captain (retired) Ilyas Malik, who had also served in Islamabad for a long and had now been transferred to the Punjab Police, was also likely to return to the capital in the years ahead. 

Published in The Express Tribune, January 20^th, 2018.