Naivalurua praises Police for crime crackdown under Tudravu's leadership

Minister for Policing, Ioane Naivalurua has praised the Fiji Police Force, under Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu's leadership, for its commitment to addressing crime in high-risk areas.

"The Commissioner of Police runs a tight ship, a well-oiled, well-lubricated ship that cannot afford to not be heading in the right direction," Mr Naivalurua said in Parliament yesterday.

"I believe the Commissioner of Police is doing a good job."

He said with its focus on 'red zone' areas with high crime incidence, Police sets specific and quantifiable targets to reduce crime, measured across crime sectors, such as aggravated robbery, burglary, rape, defilement of minors and drugs, as well as crime reduction and detection rates.

"Crime should be descending and crime detection should be ascending," Mr Naivalurua added.

"10 per cent is the crime reduction benchmark, while detection should be 70 per cent for all reported crimes."

The Fiji Police Force and the Ministry of Policing plan to improve policing from this month, especially at the community level, he said.

"For operations to work, it needs not only the support of the public, but a very close cooperation between the police and the public through trust."

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