A Letter To The Inspector-General Of Police (A Workshop Of False Hope)

By

Prince Charles Dickson

pcdbooks@yahoo.com

Jos, Plateau Nigeria

 

Dear Sunday,

 

 

Before I go far in this letter I crave your indulgence to leave the sidekicks of this letter and look at the main issues and deal with the substance of this letter which is on behalf of millions of Nigerians that have suffered and are still suffering due to the inefficiency of the Police which you head.

 

Sir, I watched with mixed feelings the other day when you paid a visit to the Late Funsho's place, how the mob nearly lynched you out of disdain for the police but for the timely intervention of your men. Painfully for some of us onlookers what made it sad was the fact that nothing was going to come out of all that promises that we have now become familiar with...that "the killers would be fished out", a message of false hope.

 

My dear Sunday, you know painfully like I know that the case was already dead even before your men could breath life into it. You run a force with no forensic, what is the force CID doing for crying out loud. no crime scene personnel, all crimes in Nigeria are solved in market place gossip while you men develop clues based on instincts backed by orders from above, and to imagine that we are in the 21^st century

 

Haba! Mr. Sunday, shamelessly although not for the first time again we have invited the London Police, and you battled to justify that action. Would it be out of place to invite Tony Blair to assist us when he is done at 10 Downing Street? You invite a Police that barely knows properly the geography of Ajegunle or can fully understand, how much more dissect the politics of Lagos State. Like everything leadership you all plus your boss Baba take Nigerians for some zombies, because we have forgotten that during Bola Ige's case it was the CIA, I am sure when yours sincerely is targeted it will be the KGB of Russia or the Indian Police, we were hoping that the DMI would handle Daramola's murder, but you have said that you would personally handle it. I pray that you would be an answered prayer for the family.

 

Tell us Brother Sunday, that so much has changed since your last Boss, Tafa Balogun and his Omisore miracle, a detainee for murder that won elections into our so-called Hallowed chambers can only be a reflection of things to come, in other words, is it not safe to conclude that of all the Guber candidates in your custody one of them is the Governor of Lagos in the waiting.

 

It is sad my Oga that despite all the billions spent by the Federal government and the small, small roger that is contributed by State governors so as to have the security apparatus effectively in their hands to manipulate, no one sees, not even you sir, anything wrong that we have not been able to solve any high profile case from Jos-Lagos, Kano-Abuja, Port Harcourt-Aba, the story is the same as suspects are detained...the usual noise and it all dies down quietly, you top men are compensated and killers are back to the streets again.

 

Sir, my apologies, with the idiotic efficiency of the Police we have seen how the Israeli Secret service of Nigeria led by Obasanjo has solved the Dikkibo saga, the Harry Marshall killing, Bola Ige, and how miraculously Rimi's son is prime suspect in the killing of his father's wife and the father is saying otherwise. These are high profile, what about low-profiles like me, what will happen if I am cut down in my prime by this government or its agent of which the Police is one, would anybody give a bounty of N1 much more N10 million...to your men, how much is our life, the ordinary Nigerians whose taxes keep them in job worth.

 

Very recently ironically almost on a Sunday, I tapped the nuisance being perpetuated by your men, although this may put my life at risk, already a patriotic Nigerian's life is always at risk... I will mention names, a certain Gabriel Idoko with service number 159055 was having a field day ripping motorist apart brandishing his weapon with his colleagues, the truth; guns that cannot kill a real robber, they had fun collecting 'tax'.

 

This is away from an incident where a vehicle that was involved in an accident and people were being helped but alas men of the mobile arm of the police arrived and in a commando like fashion bamboozled everyone by the time the left some GSM handsets were missing, foolishly for the Officer that benefited two days latter, we called the number and your guess sir, he picked and answered "this is Inspector.... can I help you", I answered "Yes, this line..." and the line went off and that was how far it went.

 

My dearest Sunday as your darling wife would call you, I like your name sir, it strikes a cord, Oh! Now I remember, Sundays used to be the only time we enjoyed Rice and stew courtesy of our neighbours who as middle class Nigerians and Christians reserved the right to that meal every Sunday in Lagos, even though then we had no luxury of either beef or chicken except it was Sallah or xmas. But has someone or your chief in charge of Lagos intimated you that these days that same Lagos get big wahala, one is robbed in broad daylight, the rate of crime is now in a state O jigbijigbijgbi, it is now a mortal sin to be caught outside at past 7 and then a painful agony to sleep at home without the Boyz to men not knocking down your door with their tools of trade.

 

Sunny, the other day at a friends place we were privileged to have the presence of a top brass and he was advising us on the high crime rate, he said the best thing was to co-operate with the robbers anytime one was apprehended by them and that as a matter of caution, he emphasized "do not go to the Police, you do not know who is who..." And this was in Jos,

 

Oga you are an intelligent Officer and lawyer too, I recall when you were on duty in Jos which incidentally has memories for you because you have the popular Ehindero Family Press one which publish many of my lecturers books (for those who cared to publish). Today, Jos is a ghost town, businesses are suffering in the hands of men of the under and above world. Your boys rather than curb the crime rate are only helping themselves, making the most of the 8.00pm curfew, arresting and arraigning poor innocent citizens, they dispense their own form of justice at a ‘what you can pay rate’.

 

Oga, is there hope, the police today is still in the age of "Stanley has Adam eaten the Apple...No, Eve has not yet come" in this age of computers, the Nigerian Police is not online, IBM typewriters which my grand father used to send my dad important letters are still used, to facilitate the ease with which files can disappear, no criminal database, cases are still recorded on chalkboard.

 

On a personal note sir, just pretend this is between me and you, the President knowing his temper and his attitude towards opposition, tell me do you think you would not be used come next year as PDP's Police for election rigging. Is the Police that of Nigerians or that of a select few. Are sure you will not get the Tafa treatment, although I expect that you are clean?

 

I must not end this my short letter by not commending you on the few occasions that you have shouted on your men, but the case has moved beyond the regular shouting, it demands more, the entire system is bankrupt. I walked past a police barracks and Walahi, my pet dogs would never forgive me if I had to leave them there for an hour, and these men are expected to take shots for a Nigerian life, it is practically impossible, instead he will rent out that pistol or Dane gun which some of them carry around, at the right price to the boys to men.

 

There is a lot to be done, Nigeria is no longer safe, period and full stop, and I must say whether you are hurt or not I have edited and re-edited this to sound as humane as possible, but I guess you never have know what it is to loose a father, mother, son or daughter, not forgetting a friend due to an avertable security lapse. Can you carve your name into the sand of Nigeria’s history, Sunday, will we remember this reign as one of those Sundays that was accompanied with plenty rice, stew and beef or it will be a black Sunday. May the good Lord be your strength.