Police can’t act on all threat alerts: CCPO

Police chief says alerts are issued to stave off blame, not prevent attacks.

LAHORE: Government agencies issue several threat alerts to the police every week, not so that the police can stop them, but so they won’t be blamed if a terrorist threat materialises into a terrorist attack, Lahore’s police chief has said.

“If Lahore police are told that 25 terrorists and two bomb-laden vehicles are entering the city, there is no way of stopping them,” Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Ahmed Raza Tahir told a press conference on Tuesday. The agencies issue threat alerts to shift responsibility to the police, he said.

However, he insisted that security arrangements for Muharram were adequate and comprehensive. He said that Rangers and the Army had been kept on standby. Lahore police personnel on training at Sihala and the Chuhng Police Training School had been called back for Muharram duties. Investigation police personnel and the Punjab Constabulary will also be assigned duties along with operations police personnel. The Quick Response Force and Elite Force would be on patrols.

He said that 600 volunteers  men and women  would perform searches of participants in congregations and processions. Three hundred Traffic Police female constables had been called in to assist with security. He said that 12,000 police personnel in total would be on duty for 4,000 gatherings and 96 processions. Security at majalis venues would be kept tight until all the participants had left. All procession routes would be checked and cleared by sniffer dogs and the Bomb Disposal Squad.

The CCPO said that the police had met with ulema and neighbourhood peace committees to ensure that they were on board with the security plan. Traders had assured the police that they would shut their shops on Muharram 10. MNAs and MPA would also oversee security arrangements.

Vehicle theft

He said that eight gangs and 44 individuals had been arrested and 212 stolen cars recovered from them in October.

Crimes Record Office SSP Sajjad Manj said that all district police officers had been instructed to inform the Anti Car Lifting office in Gulberg about vehicle theft cases so the office could maintain a complete record and help locate stolen vehicles.

The CCPO said that 1,700 cars and 800 bikes had been recovered and returned to their owners during his tenure (up to and including October).

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30^th, 2011.