Agenda For The New IGP —Tayo Ogunbiyi

Eventually, the former Inspector General of Police (IGP), Hafiz Ringim, lost out in the battle to keep his job. Throughout his tenure in office, the controversial Islamic sect, Boko Haram, was Ringim’s nemesis. The battle between him and the sect became so intense that the latter took the battle right to the Force Headquarters Abuja where Ringim held sway. But for mother luck the sect would have him out, as cheaply as the Libyan rebels got Ghadaffi. Today, Ringim has become history. Since nature abhors vacuum, Mohammed Abubakar has been appointed by President Jonathan as the Acting Inspector General of Police. A passionate professional, Mohammed Abubakar, once worked in Lagos where he had a fairly good tenure as the Commissioner of Police. He has also worked in other parts of the country in his eventful career. Despite his appealing credentials, it will be too simplistic, however, to think that the fortune of the Nigeria Police will change over night by a mere change in its leadership structure. The issues that are involved in the re-positioning of the Police are much more complex. If the Nigeria Police is to fulfill the yearnings of Nigerians, the new Acting Inspector General must be ready to go the whole hog.

For one, he must be prepared to strengthen the intelligence gathering capacity of the Nigeria Police. This is the aspect that is seriously missing in the police today. It is laughable to see policemen mounting road blocks as a sort of security precaution thereby causing avoidable traffic gridlock across the country. Aside the nuisance that most of the roadblocks constitute, they don’t serve any reasonable purpose order than that of corruption. The new IG will do himself and the nation a great service if he is able to put in place an institutionalized mechanism that will enhance the ability of his men to gather intelligence. Candidly, the failure that is being experienced in the security sector in the country today is largely a product of failure in intelligence gathering.

Furthermore, the new IG must ensure that a synergy exists between his organisation and other security agencies in the country. This is important because the kind of security challenges being faced by the country presently is one that calls for close collaboration among all the security arms of the government and indeed other paramilitary bodies. For instance, if our borders remain porous, it will continue to pose a great threat to the country thereby making the work of the police more difficult. Therefore, the police authority must see to it that it works closely with the immigration, customs and other relevant organisations to ensure that security around the borders is improved.

Perhaps, and more importantly, the new IG has to bring on board a well thought out programme of re- orientating the police on civilised conduct. The last protest against subsidy removal clearly revealed the un-professional approach of the Nigeria Police in handling protests and other forms of civil actions. It is unfortunate that in this age, the Nigeria police still make use of live ammunition to check protesters who are not armed. To reverse this trend, the police authority needs to completely change the orientation of its men in line with what obtains in civilised societies. It is embarrassing, at times, to see police officers beating, slapping and brutalising people who have neither been taken to court nor convicted. The time for the Nigeria Police to imbibe the culture of courteousness in its interaction with members of the public is now. Hence, there is need for the new IGP to refine the operations of the force. It is important that our policemen understand the damage any reprehensible act by them could do to the image of the country especially in the eyes of foreigners who come into our country for various reasons. It is ridiculous to see some of them behave indecorously at the various airports across the country. They need to be courtly while dealing with the people. This is the minimum that is expected of them. It is not negotiable.

More importantly, the police authorities need to take the issue discipline more seriously. The police, the world over, is an institution that thrives on discipline . Ours must not be an exception. Those that fall short of expectations should be shown the way out. There should be no attempt to protect those that bring the image of the force into disrepute as this will send wrong signals among the rank and file. The transformation of the Nigeria police is the first duty of the Nigerian policeman; no effort no matter how well-intentioned could achieve its desired result without behavioural and attitudinal change from the police personnel. Every police officer should see himself as a Police Public Relations Officer. Therefore, every policeman must be trained and sensitised to be a police image maker.

One equally important area which the new IGP must focus on seriously is the issue of police welfare. Compared with its counterparts the world over, the Nigerian police seriously lag behind in terms of access to basic necessities of life. It is no longer news that the average Nigerian policeman works in an extremely complex and harsh environment. It is important that adequate provision be made to insure the policemen in view of the hazards involved in their job. Additionally, the Nigeria Police should embark on massive rehabilitation of police barracks across the country while a machinery must be put in motion to build new ones. The salaries of the officers and men of the police force should be commensurate with what is obtainable internationally. The truth of the matter is that any investment in the Nigeria Police is an investment in the larger society. The Lagos State Government has pointed the way forward in this respect as it has insured men of its anti-crime outfit, Rapid Response Squad (RRS), in addition to offering them better welfare packages.

One other vital aspect the new IG must pay attention to is the recruitment process of the organisation. It is imperative that police recruitment process identifies people who have passion for the profession rather than those with material or pecuniary interest. Indeed, this is the bane of the Nigeria Police as a significant proportion of its officers see it as an end to a means. No wonder, most of them see the police uniform as a meal ticket. This must stop. Similarly, the Nigeria Police Force should, without delay, re-establish data centres for collection, collation and dissemination of crime information in conformity with international standards. Related to this is the necessity for community policing to be fully integrated into the system. Community policing should be institutionalised as against what is currently practised in Nigeria. It should not be treated as a unit or department but a philosophy. It is only when every community in the country is effectively policed that the safety of the whole country can be guaranteed.

On final note, it is vital that the new IG exercises sufficient restraint while exercising his constitutional right to freely express himself. One will like to see an IG that talks less and acts more. Unfortunately, the new IG, like most of his predecessors, has equally started talking tough. Nigerians are tired of rhetoric. What the people want is a police that is strategically positioned to protect them not a lousy one that shout all day while common criminals slip off their finger tips at night. Abubakar must allow his work to speak for him.

•Ogunbiyi is of the Features Unit, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja