RATHER than reducing, police brutality against civilians in Nigeria has remained rampant, desecrating the provisions of the 1999 Constitution on citizens’ human rights. The continued police misconduct with abuse of civilians smacks of impunity, an audacious attitude, and a lack of adequate supervision of officers deployed on special patrol.
Recently, in Asaba, Delta State, policemen on special patrol were seen on a viral video assaulting a young man, who, reports claimed, had requested them to display their hands to ensure nothing was hidden before searching him. The request infuriated the men, and they grabbed and assaulted him in an unrestrained manner.
Reacting to the video, the State Commissioner of Police, Olufemi Abaniwonda, who was disturbed by the development, ordered the arrest and detention of the officers involved to face the law in line with the Police Act and relevant regulations.
The case in point is one among many that are recorded daily across the state and the nation in general. From Warri to Asaba, incidents of policemen dehumanizing civilians abound. Recently, police from the Ebrumede Police Division, Warri, were accused in a viral video by one DJ Young of assaulting his brother, who had gone to buy food from a local food vendor.
There was also a case of the death of a 24-year-old budding artist, Paul Obukowho, who was allegedly tortured to a state of unconsciousness by officers of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) at Ughelli and died in the hospital.
Beyond Delta State, the rampant cases of police brutality, unlawful detention, assaults on citizens, and other human rights violations are trending unabated. For instance, the case of a man reportedly unjustifiably assaulted by policemen in a viral video at the Odo Ori Market, Iwo, Osun State, a few years ago, is still fresh in the minds of eyewitnesses.
Similar cases abound in Lagos, Enugu, Ibadan, Edo, Umuahia, Anambra, etc, where young men have been unjustly held and assaulted by policemen.
The responsibility of the Nigerian Police to protect lives and property, in addition to the maintenance of law and order, as enshrined in Section 214 of the 1999 Constitution and the Police Act, is not in doubt. However, what is agitating the minds of many Nigerians is the resort to assault and intimidation of citizens at the slightest opportunity. Such action has demeaned the police in the eyes of the public.
Assuming responsibility, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has consistently raised the alarm over incidents of torture, illegal detention, inhuman and other cruel acts by the police against citizens.
These acts of unleashing assaults on the people could be traced to the inability of supervising officers to properly instruct their subordinates on the essence of civility in policing.
Besides, some of the policemen could have mental issues occasioned by drug use, illiteracy, determination to exploit civilians for personal enrichment, and immorality in the society, or outright impunity, etc.
Much as the police authorities, especially the Inspector-General of Police and Commissioners of Police across the states, have tried to checkmate these abnormalities, they have continued unabated, with the people bearing the brunt.
While we acknowledge the efforts of the police authority through the arrest, detention, and orderly room trial of erring police officers, it is important to mention that such action may not fully resolve the act of misconduct by policemen on patrol.
To this end, police officers found to be involved in the breach of the law by assaulting citizens they were supposed to protect should be tried in the formal law courts to serve as a deterrent to others. Also, members of the public should shun circumstances that can trigger confrontation with policemen on patrol. They are human and can act irrationally in certain circumstances.
We commend the Delta State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Olufemi Abaniwanda, for the action taken so far. However, he should follow up and ensure that the officers caught in the viral video are prosecuted.
This will help to restrain the various Special Forces parading with Hilux vans across the state, exhibiting unprofessional conduct and intimidating law-abiding citizens, especially the young men, from impunity.
