Incidents of unlawful detention and human rights abuses are rampant in Nigeria, but only a few victims are willing to press charges, In this report, GBENGA ADERANTI examines the reasons behind rising incidents of unlawful detention by the police and what could be done to arrest the trend
The issue of abuse of human rights by the Nigeria Police reared its head again last week with the story of an inmate awaiting trial at a correctional centre in Suleja, Niger State.
According to the report, the suspect was detained with a First Information Report (FIR) that was obtained by a police prosecutor but was not signed by the presiding Magistrate.
The Chief Judge of Niger State, Justice Halima Ibrahim Abdulmalik, was shocked to discover this during the continuation of her prison visit to the Suleja Correctional Centre.
According to the report, Abdulmalik, while examining cases of the awaiting trial inmates, discovered that the FIR on which the accused was detained was not signed by the presiding Magistrate in charge of Izom Magistrate Court in Gurara Local Government Area of the state.
To make the matters worse for the police officer in question, the presiding Magistrate of the Magistrate Court in Izom denied ever attending to the accused in her court saying that she was not aware of the case, and neither did she sign the FIR.
On further questioning, the Chief Judge discovered that the FIR and remand warrant were obtained by a police prosecutor at the Magistrate Court, Izom, identified as Inspector Mohammed, who was unable to give a satisfactory explanation on how he came about the FIR and remand warrant.
Mohammed could not explain why he used a fake FIR to put someone in the correctional centre for four months.
The case of an inmate at the Suleja Correctional Centre is one of the many cases of unlawful detention being perpetrated by some bad eggs in the Nigeria Police Force.
In fact, cases of unlawful detention were one of the issues that exacerbated the violent 2020 #ENDSARS protests.
Early this year, an Anambra High Court in Awka asked the Nigeria Police to pay the sum of N10 million to one Chukwuemeka Ekwueme, a real estate developer. Ekwueme was said to have been detained between December 14 and 28, 2022 without being taken to court.
Sometime in 2017, an FCT, Maitama Court had ordered the then Inspector-General of Police and two others to pay the sum of N1 million to one Ujunwa Udeani as general damages for unlawful detention.
Ms. Udeani had in June 2014, filed a suit before Justice Hussein Baba-Yusuf, claiming that her fundamental rights were violated by the three respondents and Toyin Kehinde, Manager FCMB, Wuse 2.
Mr. Baba-Yusuf while delivering judgment on the matter, held that the detention of the applicant from February 12 to February 16, 2014, was illegal and unconstitutional in law.
“Any person illegally held or detained shall be entitled to general damages.
“On this, the detention of the applicant from 12 to 16 February was unlawful.
“She is entitled to be awarded general damages in the sum of N1 million,” the judge ruled.
The judge also gave an order of perpetual injunction on the first to the third respondents and their agents, restraining them from interfering with the affairs of the applicant.
While both the judiciary and the police authorities have continued to frown at the incidents of unlawful detention and other human rights abuses, with the police paying damages where culpable, it seems the incidents will continue to fester.
Speaking on First Information Report (FIR), a Lagos-based lawyer, Barrister
Barrister Tayo Douglas, said the police can detain a suspect pending arraignment before the court, but they are not permitted to detain the suspect for more than 48 hours.
Quoting section 35 of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, he said any person who is arrested by the law enforcement agency for the commission of a crime must be brought before the court within 24 to 48 hours. Anything outside this provision of the constitution he said, is illegal.
He explained that an FIR is the record of a crime by a police officer who has been assigned to investigate the commission of the crime.
According to him, FIR purpose is to at least activate the process of a criminal trial against an accused, and at the conclusion of investigation.
“The police always file before the court an FIR by which the court is expected to proceed against the accused person after arraignment. The police cannot unilaterally send any person to prison or correctional centre. It is the prerogative of the court and not the police,” he said.
Douglas noted that incidents akin to that of Suleja Correctional Centre are prevalent because “a police officer could be terrible sometimes, acting ultra vires of the established rules or statutes.
“That does not mean his acts are approved by the superior authority. If reported or taken up, such erring officer can be duly punished administratively.”
Douglas said while it is not uncommon for victims unlawfully or illegally detained by police to seek redress, he added that it is more of a civil remedy.
He said: “The police authorities may on their own decide to punish the erring officer, but that does not prevent the victim from taking up his civil case against the police authority generally.
“Unfortunately, some victims of illegal detention may not have the courage or wherewithal to press for action against the police, and that explains why some cases are left without redress.’
The Lagos lawyer advised victims of unlawful detention to get the attention of their counsel who is in the best position to take up the matter.
Another lawyer, Toheeb Adebayo Ramon, said incidents of unlawful detention are usually a result of police failure to comply with the extant provisions of the law and incompetence on the part of the police.
“By the provision of S35 of CFRN as amended, and Article 3 of the African Charter on Human Rights ( Ratification and Enforcement ) Act, Cap A9 LFN 2004, the police have no power to detain anyone, save for as provided by the Law.
“However, S38 of the Police Act 2020 permits the police to arrest with conditions, and arrest, as we now know, is the beginning of detention.”
He said further that the police upon reasonable information or witnesses of a commission of a crime can detain a suspect for a maximum of 24 hours. After that, they must bring the person to court.
“However if the police cannot bring the person to the court within 24 hours for a public holiday, or weekend, they must bring the person to court within a maximum of 48 hours as the case may be in the circumstances it becomes illegal for the police to detain any suspect without court order beyond this period.”
He blamed the corruption within the police as the reason why incidents of illegal detention are on the rise.
Unfortunately, many police officers who contravened this provision of the law get away unpunished because most victims are not ready to press charges.
While many had in the past sought legal options and the courts ruled in their favour, with police paying compensation, Ramon said aside from the legal procedures taking a long time, it is also expensive and many whose rights have been violated would avoid taking the legal route, even though “compensation is guaranteed under Section 38 for the illegal detention.”
He disclosed that both the person supplying information or lodging FIR will be liable if found to be false while police who detain upon FIR may be excused unless it is proven that police were aware of the false information in the FIR. “FIR is used to cause police to make an arrest and subsequently detain the accused while detention is the consequential result of the FIR.”
Ramon is of the view that until the Police Service Commission is discarded and dissolved and another body whose members or executive are not retired police officers but retired judges, elder statesmen, and persons of high integrity, is formed, the issue of unlawful detention would fester.
“Police officers should not be part of the executives of the Commission,” Ramon said.
Also speaking, former Commissioner of Police, Nasarawa State, Bola Longe, was of the view that it would be wrong for a suspect to be remanded in a correctional centre without going through court criminal proceedings.
He explained that while in the North, any suspect could be taken to court through a Force Information Report if the case is not a capital offence and then the magistrate or area court judge will make a pronouncement on the matter. If it is something that can be summarily dealt with, it will be summarily dealt with, but if it cannot, the court can order that the person can be detained in the correctional centre, not that police can take a suspect to the correctional centre without a court order.
At the time of writing this report, Longe said he had not read the report of the Suleja Correctional Centre incident. He, however, expressed doubt that any police officer would summarily take a suspect to a correctional Centre without recourse to a court.
Longe said: “I don’t think a matter like this can take place. There are laid down procedures that have to be followed.”
He blamed a lack of professionalism on the part of police for incidents of unlawful detention in the country.
Quoting the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended, he said, within 24 hours, a suspect should be granted bail by the police, adding that “if the suspect is not granted bail, a suspect can be arraigned in court. It depends on the complexity of the offence and the distance from the police station to the nearest court.
“If it is too far, it should be within 48 hours. But if it is not far, it can be 24 hours.”
While the suspect’s bail could be delayed because of one reason or the other, he disclosed that “when it is outside 24 or 48 hours respectively, the detention becomes illegal.”
He admitted that the constitutional provisions have stated expressly the period over which a suspect could be detained, and putting this into practice could be problematic.
“Because investigations are a little bit complex, some cases that are not complex, within 24 hours, you can start investigations and complete them.
“But when it is a complicated matter, like rape, robbery, and treason, you may need several days to investigate, and what the police need to do is to go to court and to obtain a remand warrant or an order from the court.”
He revealed that there are some civil cases that are not to be entertained by the police, but disclosed that there are some cases some people may look at as civil cases, which “when you go deeper into your investigation, you will discover that they are criminal.”
The former Nasarawa CP said there are several factors that are contributing to the unlawful detention of suspects by the police.
According to him, some of the investigators are not professional; secondly, people most often do not know their rights. “As long as people do not know their rights there will be problems. People can infringe on their rights and they will not know what to do. And when people are not reacting, those who are milking people through the wrong procedure will continue to do it.
“What people need to do is to go to court to fight for their fundamental human rights.”
Recognising the fact that there are many people who are poor and cannot afford to fight for the enforcement of their rights, Longe said for those people, there are lawyers that are doing pro bono cases for people.
“We have legal officers all over the state as well that are assisting people. But because of ignorance, people do not know what to do and where to go. That is why they are having problems and incidents like this will continue to fester.”
While he would not place a figure on the number of police officers that had been prosecuted as a result of unlawful detention in the past, he disclosed that some must have definitely been prosecuted.
He recalled that when he was a CP in Nasarawa State, police officers were not doing despicable things like that in the command because he tutored his men on what to do.
Longe said: “We have a police human rights manual that police officers are reading and with the human rights education that our officers are having in most command, they are not doing what is not within the purview of the law.”
The argument in certain quarters is that irrespective of the outcome of court judgments, victims don’t get paid. He also faulted the claim saying many of the victims of unlawful detention had been paid in the past.
“That is why police authorities are not taking the matter lightly. Most of the time when the police authorities discover that the officers involved are at fault, the police will deal with the officers and they will bear the brunt of their misadventure.
However, Longe advised Nigerians to shun crimes. He observed that many people are criminally minded, and when police notice that they are criminally minded, they would want to exploit them.
He stressed the need for Nigerians to have a legal education, especially on what to do and what not to do.
Longe proposed that Law should be introduced into the school curriculum in order for them to know the basic things.
“This will guide them against committing a crime.”
While many victims of unlawful detention are satisfied with being released, Longe said it is possible to get compensation if they have a genuine case where their rights have been trampled upon.
“They can go to court; you know, a matter of that nature can take a lot of time. If they go to the High Court, the police can appeal if the judgment is against them, and from there to the Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court.
“The police authority will not pay any compensation until after the supreme court has given judgment on the matter.
“So it is a complicated issue.
There is no reason for any police officer to ignorantly act in a despicable manner.
The Nation gathered that the law enforcement agency has a human rights manual.
Fortunately, Longe was one of those that wrote the manual about 11 years ago. The manual has since been adopted and is being used in all police training institutions.
The former CP said FIR makes prosecution very easy and does not contain the rigmarole we go through in the Southern part of the country, and it is well-ordered. Nobody can detain with a Force Information report because it has to go through the court, either magistrate court or area court.
He said the issue of unlawful detention can be a thing of the past if the police authority takes drastic action against police officers found guilty of this act.
“I think by the grace of God, this country will move forward. We have a chairman of the Police Commission IGP Solomon Arase (rtd) that will take drastic action that will affect Nigeria Police.
“The Inspector General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba is a man that will not tolerate nonsense.
“By the grace of God, we will soon have a new government. The current government is trying, but I know the new government will do more to safeguard people’s interests in this country.”
Hope for citizens
There are hopes after all for citizens whose citizens rights have been impinged upon.
In a way to curb the excesses of police officers, the present Commissioner of Police, since he assumed office, has made several examples of police officers who had violated the rights of the citizens.
For example, the Police demoted its officers that slapped civilians in Rivers. The report said the security agency acted following complaints and findings on video evidence widely circulated on social media on April 9.
The policeman and his colleagues were arrested for assault, discreditable conduct, and incivility to members of the public.
After an orderly room trial by the Force Provost Marshal, the officer’s rank was reduced from Inspector to Sergeant.
Early in January, the Police subjected some of its officers to disciplinary action after assaulting a lady in Lagos
The errant officers were seen in a video where they assaulted a lady in a Lagos community.
Also, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Idowu Owohunwa, also punished the DPO of Okokomaiko, SP Emmanuel Edebagha, for failing to supervise his officers properly.
Edebagha was removed after officers of the Okokomaiko Division were accused of forcibly extorting N101,000 from a phone dealer in Lagos, falsely labeling him a fraudster.
Owohunwa ordered the immediate removal of the DPO and initiated disciplinary action against him and all officers indicted in the incident.
The state police spokesman, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed the development via his Twitter handle.
He wrote: “CP Idowu Owohunwa has ordered the immediate removal of DPO Okokomaiko for his lack of supervision of his men.
“CP Owohunwa has also ordered the commencement of disciplinary action against him and all his indicted officers (who are already in the state headquarters).”