Cops working, not effectively

Police have been largely absent from the field in the one month since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government amid a mass uprising, causing safety concerns for the public.
Members of the force, mainly responsible for maintaining law and order, are still suffering from a serious lack of confidence because of a fear of getting withdrawn, transferred, sued, and even arrested.
Traffic in the capital, especially at intersections and roundabouts, remains chaotic due to inadequate management. Pedal rickshaws and battery-powered three wheelers are ubiquitous on the major streets, slowing down the faster vehicles and contributing to the chaos. 
According to sources, fewer traffic police members are on the roads than before.
In the last one and a half decades, police turned into unquestioning enforcers of an increasingly authoritarian regime, and many see the police as a symbol of oppression.
Police members understand this and are afraid of public wrath. Many officers went into hiding after August 5, said top police officers.
Lt Gen (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, adviser to the home ministry, yesterday urged the superintendents of police in the districts with the force and logistics they have.
It is the responsibility of the police to earn the people’s trust which was eroded by past irregularities and corruption.
Sources said 700-800 officers, including some of the rank of cadres, were still absent from work.
Before and immediately after the ouster of Hasina, police faced unprecedented public fury as people set their vehicles on fire and ransacked police facilities in reprisal attacks.
According to police sources over 450 police stations out of 664 were affected, and some of the establishments were set on fire by angry mobs.
As per Police Headquarters (PHQ) data, a total of 5,829 firearms and 6,06,742 bullets were looted from police, different police stations, and establishments. Of those, 3,763 guns and 2,86,082 bullets were recovered while 2,066 firearms and 3,20,660 bullets are still missing.
Therefore, the law enforcers hardly venture outside their stations without army escorts, especially after sundown. Their services have remained largely limited to registering complaints and cases. Police’s 999 hotline resumed operations on a limited scale on August 9, fully resumed on August 12.
But the service remains a far cry as the police stations are suffering from manpower and logistics shortage. In the absence of police, primarily, the national emergency helpline was used to forward calls or take assistance from the armed forces camps, which were set up across the country to ensure security.
“Everything including the case docket, warrants, vehicles have been burnt down in my police station. Arms and ammunition were also looted. We have started patrolling on a low scale but many of the tasks remain stalled.
“Two vehicles have been provided from Rajarbagh Police Lines, but have yet to start arresting suspects,” said the officer-in-charge of a police station under Dhaka Metropolitan Police, wishing anonymity.
Md Mainul Islam, Inspector General of Police (IGP) said, “It is true that the police activities were not functioning for some days.”