For A Viable Police Force

 

In a way, the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) can be described as the powerhouse of our internal security. Among other functions, the NPF is charged with maintaining law and order, safeguarding lives and property and detecting, preventing and controlling crime. Being a critical institution for protecting the peace, tranquility and security of the Nigerian state in order to create the enabling environment for political stability, social cohesion and economic development, the overwhelming need for a viable police force in the country cannot be underscored. This is especially against the backdrop of the prevailing orgy of violence, killings and destruction across the land, as wrought through terrorism, armed robbery, assassination, kidnapping and cultism.
At a dangerous time like this in Nigeria, it is disheartening that our police force is beset with several factors that have emasculated its ability. One of them is under-funding, which has adversely affected this all-important law enforcement agency through lack of requisite manpower (personnel) and infrastructure and tools for crime prevention and control like forensic and fingerprint facilities, patrol vans, arms and ammunition, anti-riot kit, bullet proof jackets and communication gadgets (including phones and walkie-talkie). This is not to mention poor salaries and allowances, which have dampened the morale of the police personnel and made some of them to be easily vulnerable to temptations of bribery and corruption and connivance with criminals.
Related to this is the lack of adequate welfare and motivational packages in the Nigerian police, in terms of duty allowance, decent offices and barracks, meritorious awards for exemplary staff, promotion of officers and men as and when due and compensation for those who die or sustain injury while on active service. There is also the problem of inadequate training, re-training and re-orientation of some of the police men and women in modern law enforcement/anti-crime techniques, especially now when criminals are becoming more organised, sophisticated and brutal in their nefarious activities.
The near atrophy or neglect of the intelligence arm of the NPF (i.e Force Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Bureau, FCIIB) over the years is another factor militating against the force in its strive to nip crime in the bud. The contagion of bribery and corruption is also blameworthy for undermining the credibility and service delivery capability of the police force. Added to this is frequent abuse of human rights by the few bad eggs in the police, as observed through harassment, unlawful arrest or detention, torture and extra-judicial killings—awful acts that have attracted opprobrium and negative image to the force.
Also critically affecting the Nigerian police is lack of full co-operation between the force and other security agencies on crime control, which is attributed to rivalry and role conflict. Similar situation can be glimpsed from the lacklustre police-public relation—a disturbing development arising from mutual suspicion and distrust between the two groups. Not helping matters in the search for a virile and vibrant NPF, is the creation of parallel bodies that duplicate the extant functions and powers of the force, especially the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).
For a viable police force in Nigeria, all the factors throwing a spanner in the works of the force should be squarely addressed. On this account, the federal government, as the custodian of law and order in the country, is well-advised to go the whole hog in reviving the force. As a matter of priority, the government should pump more fund in the police force for both institutional and capacity building, including establishing/maintaining police stations nationwide, providing befitting accommodations for personnel, procuring necessary accoutrements for crime detection, prevention and control, paying attractive salaries and allowances and implementing new training and re-training programmes in the force.
As a matter of urgency, the government should look into the highly controversial issue of the recent elevation of the NSCDC to a full-fledged law enforcement agency with the possibility of bearing firearms. Without being economical with the truth, this measure is likely to infringe on the constitutional mandate of the Nigerian police and other relevant security agencies that are vested with the powers of stabilising our internal security situations like the Department of State Security (DSS). Already, this has generated bad blood between the Police and the Civil Defence Corps, as witnessed in their frequent brawl, even physical confrontation, over conflicting functions.
Making the NPF to fulfil its potentials would also require a deliberate and sustained effort to inculcate sterling qualities of honesty, integrity, accountability, discipline, selfless service, civility and reliability in the personnel of the force. Building such an enviable police force would involve ensuring that the process of recruitment into the police is transparent, honest and meticulous in order to sieve out applicants who are not qualified or who have questionable character. Such a force should be people-friendly and worthy of attracting positive image and public support.