The Interfaith Mediation Centre (IMC), Kaduna, has sought stronger collaboration with the Police Academy and Kaduna State Ministry of Justice to promote peacebuilding, mediation and trust between security institutions and communities.
The centre made the call during separate advocacy and courtesy visits to the Police Academy and the Ministry of Justice in Kaduna.
At the Police Academy, the Commandant, AIG Dansabo Idi, welcomed the initiative and expressed the institution’s readiness to explore areas of collaboration with IMC.
IMC Programme Officer, Nafisa Mohammad Nasir, said the organisation’s Police “I Care” Initiative and Trust-Building Programme, implemented in collaboration with Initiatives of Change (IofC) Nigeria, seeks to strengthen police-community relations through dialogue, empathy, mutual understanding and community-oriented approaches to security.
The IMC delegation, led by Rev. Samson Auta, also shared experiences from previous engagements involving police officers and community members in Kaduna State.
The Commandant noted that the Police Academy has personnel from different religious backgrounds and stressed the importance of peaceful coexistence. He also called for the inclusion of traditional religious perspectives in future engagements.
At the Ministry of Justice, IMC discussed possible collaboration in mediation, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), access to justice, gender-based violence and prevention of jungle justice.
The Director of Public Prosecutions, Samson Nehemiah Magaji, said the ministry has structures for mediation and ADR and expressed willingness to explore collaboration with IMC.
He urged greater community sensitisation against jungle justice and other forms of extrajudicial action, noting that such practices could lead to the injury or death of innocent persons.
The IMC also proposed sharing its peacebuilding and mediation materials with the ministry and informed officials of a planned summit in November 2026 involving stakeholders in justice, peacebuilding and mediation.
Both institutions expressed openness to further engagement with IMC on strengthening dialogue, mediation, peaceful coexistence and community-based conflict prevention.
