The behavioral and operational modus of a country’s Police Force is sometime construe as a reflection of the people and culture of that country. Below are five practices that are common with members of the NPF, which is deemed barbaric, it is advisable this abhorring traits are check in the interest of the Force and image of the country.
- Arrests Without Element Of Professionalism, Warrant
This practice is totally unprofessional, men of the NPF do not have the right to just arrest anyone at will, the individual being arrested have his rights. The obtainable standard is that there is a written warrant/authorization to carry out an arrest. By so doing, the rule of law is upheld.
- Reckless Use Of Fire Arms: To a great extent, one will not be wrong to say that many men clad in police uniforms are trigger happy, and this stems from the fact that they lack proper training. The police is to serve the civilian populace, civil being the word, the streets are no battlefields were sporadic shootings are acceptable. Each policeman must be made to account for every bullet fired, that way sanity can be restored. There are other means to bring people to obey and be calm, other than indiscriminate shooting.
A clear distinction must be made between the operations of the police and operatives of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) this is because many times, the two agency clash.
It is funny to hear that sometimes the policemen stop drivers for not having their seat belts on, that is after they must have asked for particulars and have found no faults, but just so that they can get something to hold unto, they begin to ask for things that are either irrelevant or are not withing their jurisdiction. The issue of illegal roadblocks must also be checked, for many road blocks we have today are illegal.
- Bribery And Corruption: The Nigeria Police Force have for too long found it totally difficult to dissociate itself from bribery, they keep on evolving as regards the way bribes are collected.
In more modern times, they have learnt to use touts as their tax collectors, so you do not see a man in uniform asking you for money, the miscreant collects while, the police stands and watch; at the end of the day, there is a sharing formula.
It is sad to note that so many criminals have got away, just by handing police men, a hundred naira note. There cannot be a restoration of law and order if the police refuses not redeem its image by refusing to accept bribes. For only then, can the people fear and respect them, as to obey and never flout the law.
- Abuse Of Service Code Of Conducts: This is one shameful practice that men of the police force must shun, it does not speak well of them, especially after they must have taxed the bus drivers and conductors, having them to pay for what one cannot account for.
Policemen should be more honorable, they must be ready to pay what is due as regards fare, and if the bus operators want to be kind to them, then so be it.
There is no how they can earn respect, if they keep on seeking for favors, they must take pride in paying for services render, even as the government is urged to pay policemen that which is due and sufficient to keep them doing their jobs with utmost professionalism.
Too many cases of police misbehavior are encountered on almost a daily basis, only recently, a photographer, Praise-Legend Onwuachu, said he had to resort to grabbing and holding on to the gun of a policeman, who was about to shoot him while conducting a search on him and his friends on Monday, December 26.
Onwuachu, who explained that he was on his way back from covering an event on Boxing Day, had driven from Owerri, Imo State to Onitsha, Anambra State without incident, until he got to Nkpor Junction and encountered a team of policemen.
He said a member of the team asked him if he had a tinted glass permit, which he said he had and was trying to retrieve the document as he sat in his car when one of them became angry, asking, “So, you don’t want to come down?”
Onwuachu said: “I told him I wanted to get the document he asked for before alighting from my car. Already angry, (it seemed he was angry and drunk before stopping us), he asked all of us (five men) in the car to come down for a search.
“We complied and he started with the man in front, he searched the boys with me and harassed them, making derogatory statements as he searched them.”
According to Onwuachu who owns a media outfit, one of his friends decided to leave after he had been searched. He said the young man went to the boot to pick his bag when the policeman told him to bring it for a search.
“He told the policeman to search it so he could go. At this point, things escalated. The policeman started calling him an animal and several other names. I decided to come in at that point. I told him in the most polite and gentle manner that there was no reason to get agitated and abusive, because we had obeyed his orders. My intervention seemed to worsen the situation as he said he had every right to call him an animal for as long as he wanted.”
He explained that the policeman became aggressive and pushed the man by the throat, at which point he made the decision to step between the policeman and his friend, telling the policeman to stop the assault.
“I must admit, my voice wasn’t gentle at this point, but whose voice would be in the face of such violence? He then shifted his attention to me and a lot happened within minutes. He first slapped me, then held me by my throat. I pushed his hands away from my throat and that infuriated him the more.
“Immediately I pushed his hands away, shouting that I dared touch him, he released the safety catch of his rifle, and pointed it at me to shoot. “In self-defence, and not having the luxury of time, I hit the muzzle of the rifle away from me and went for his gun to stop him, as he seemed hell bent on shooting.
“As we fought for the gun, all his colleagues came and it was a competition of who was gonna ‘cork’ his gun fast enough. Thankfully, the crowd that had gathered got involved and physically held them from shooting. With more people involved and the threat of shooting gone, they continued their assault, hitting me and the other guy with their guns, kicking, punching and slapping us. They left me barely able to walk to my car, I still limp as I type this.”
He said he took the action, which many might interpret as stupid because he did not want to join the statistics of police victims. Onwuachu identified some of the policemen involved in the incident as Umoh Aniekan, Okoi Okoi, Ekechi Jacob, Inspector Kanu.
It was gathered that harassment in that junction by the men stationed there, said to be mobile policemen from the MOPOL 3 unit in Enugu, was nothing new. Onwuachu told newsmen that he had reported the case to the Police Complaints Response Unit but had received no reply or indication that the case would be investigated.
[Chargeroom NG]
