Albatross Around The Police Neck

By

Mohmmed A. Adamu

mainaelkainawy@yahoo.com

 

 

Society, according to sociologists, consists of individuals, social groups and institutions that competitively struggle like pendulum in order to survive. These struggles often cause friction as one party may consciously or otherwise accomplish its goal at the expense of another. Hence there has been need for the formation of the police in any well-established society since time immemorial to ensure that there is neither pray nor predator.

       

The function of the police well known to even a novice centres around making sure that people obey the law and order; ensuing that no one tramples on the others rights; contribute in making the society corrupt-free; eliminating social vices and helping in respectable image of the society to be mirrored from within and outside world. The question is that does the police justify the confidence reposed in it by the society?

       

Since it began with a thirty member consular guard formed in Lagos colony in 1861 to date, the Nigeria Police has been often restructured and transformed to meet the demand of the society.

 

How fruitful are these efforts?  

       

The history of the Nigeria Police in the olden days was “mouth–watering” as all things moved as assumed. The policemen were seen like prophet for they served nothing than the nation. Hausas named them: Dan Doko i.e. the upholders of the law. That was when the public personnel saw anything to do with law or duty as sacrosanct or even sacred. An aged ex–police spoke from experience “I am very proud of having served my nation. However, it was tough, the service hanged over me like the sword of Damocles for I always kept watchful of being prone to contravening any law governing my duly”. Image how he was dedicated to the job!

       

This epoch had been when people envied a police person, believing them to be super-human, seemingly baptized into a firewall that cannot be dismantled on penetrated into by any iota of misdeed talk-less of corruption. Thus no accusing finger could be pointed at the police then.

       

Spontaneously, few decades ago the issue of corrupt practices sneaked into the Nigeria Police and began to grow rapidly and to a pervasive level. This ranges from collection of Kola on the highways, arbitrary arrest of people on the streets to get bail fees, deliberately purious accusation of innocent, to police collusion with criminals as being frequently reported. These acts have pulled the police down naked in the eyes of the public. It has gone to the extent that you can hear a person replying, “wannan maganar yansanda ce meaning this is police statement” when something he considered insincere was to ld to him.

       

Considering the nature of corruption in the land it is not just to think that the police are the only corrupt, but theirs is unique as it touches the society directly. I agree with Prof Kyari Tijjani when he said, “Corruption is every where in Nigeria, but it differs from organization to another depending on some variables”.

       

Successive administrations in the country have put in place several measures to improve the organization / police. This include restructuring the force by forming some special units, bringing to book wrong doers among the police, stipulating the amount of money to be carried by a police man on a beat or checkpoint among others. Obasanjo administration has been trying to multiply the number of personnel in the force thinking that such organization major could boost its functionality. In my opinion this is a beat around the bush and cannot hit the target. The reasons will unfold later.

       

It was a bolt from the blue to authorities in Nigeria when the Human Rights Watch on July, 28 published a report titled “Rest in Pieces” accusing the Nigeria Police of human right violations: such as arbitrary torture of detainees, rope of female detainees and even extra – judicial killings. On the other hand I think no ordinary citizen was in any way flabbergastered at the report knowing what seems obtainable in the police.

       

In a swift reaction, information minister France Nweka (Jr) appeared in the media and dismissed the report as a mere vitriolic vituperation. I am sorry to say but even my fellow Nigerians would agree with me that the minister was there to whitewash for the government.

       

I can reason with the minister that patriotic act of lieing for one’s country is a kind of diplomatic measure to promote national goals as argued by Abros Bierce. However, to make an utterance far contrary to reality can geopardise instead of building image of the nation.

       

Take for example the recent allegation of prisoner mistreatment at the United State detention facility of Guantanamo bay, the US has not at anytime denied or accepted the allegation but only said it would investigate the matter and whoever might be indicated in the report shall face justice.

       

Book to the human rights watch report, it could have been democratic had Nigeria adopted the same approach, cautiously mindful of the substance of the report. This is neither unprecedented nor a heavy punch on Nigeria’s face. How democratized is Nigeria compared with US that suffered Guantanmo’s report, w hich is more shameful? The best remedy is for the government to look at the genesis of the trend in the Nigeria Police and proffer a workable solution.

May I suggest some points, which I believe, consolidate the complex nature of decay in the Nigeria Police. The questions of who and who constitute the police, how does the government it self utilizes the police and how their welfare is been catered for are very vital. If these are answered and solved things would definitely change to better.  

       

No sooner had the Obasanjo administration came into office, it adopted a policy plan of massive and sustained recruitment into the Nigeria Police in order to augment and reposition the “men in black” to effectively meet the challenges of keeping law and order in a democratic Nigeria. For this, the administration deserves a heavy pat in the back. But, at the same time the shortfall witnessed in the mechanism used in the recruitment exercise must be deplored. In that, people of questionable characters were recruited this results much to the detriment of the principles of “good character, good leader” in a society.

 

It follows that secondary school dropout, recalcitrant thugs, irresponsible harlots and other elements of evil characters made the majority of list into the force. In fact I know of a township social deviant, a notorious pickpocket who made his ways into the force.

 

In a nutshell, if stories told by new recruits, who have being there and seen it all, are anything to go by then, the “black uniform” is simply up for grabs for whoever is willing to pay the “royalty”. Indeed, it was a case of “ the highest bidder”. An intelligent and patriotic friend of mine sat for the recruitment exams twice but failed just because he refused to oil the hand or scratch the back of the examiners. Interestingly the young man insists he would not bribe, as his mission was to police the society.

       

As a manifestation of such skunk characters in the police a Mafabi Newspaper carried a headline in one of its edition reading “Wata Yar Sanda Ta yi Cikin Shege a Nguru” i.e. a Police woman was impregnated out of wedlock in Nguru. How imaginable?                 

 

Another contributing factor for the seemingly tarnished image of the police is government’s unwarranted deployment of force in restricting and some times preventing people from _expression their constitutional rights. It stands to reason that such continual extra – judicial brutality – knowingly or unknowingly, conditioned the police to develop brutal and torturous tendencies in the discharging their duties.        

       

This issue of police welfare is also paramount. To start with the dilapidated quarters occupied by the police personnel across the country suffice an answer. If epitomizes how neglected they are no proper promotion, no incentive, no fat allowances. All these have subjected the men to somewhat irresponsible behaviour as they could easily resort to whatever possible means to have ends meet.

 

These have collectively therefore become an albatross around the police neck. Though I am not a prophet of doom but thing will not change into better in the police and accusing fingers will not stop pointing at it until the aforementioned issues are visited and resolved.   

 

From:

                                               

Mohmmed A. Adamu

Department of Mass Communication,

University of Maiduguri.