The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Code

  • Hope for visually impaired

    Hope for visually impaired

    With the increase in beggars on the street of various countries, including Nigeria, a headset that takes visually impaired people around cities has been designed by Microsoft.

    The headset was invented by a Neuroscientist, Sheila Nirenberg, who found a technique that promises to treat blindness.

    The neuroscientist ventured into the world of the blinds in search of technological innovations that would help restore hope to the blind by cracking the brain’s visual code.

    Worthy of mention is the fact that each time you seat before a computer, operate your mobile phone or view anything bright under the sun, your eyes are doing a remarkable thing.

    In this situation, a stream of light from the words and pictures bounces into the eyeballs, falling onto photoreceptor cells on the retina.

    Nirenberg, a neuroscientist, Weill Medical College at Cornell University claims that this visual information is passed on to output cells and then transmitted to the brain as a kind of code, where it is reconstructed to make up the letters in this sentence you are reading right now.

    However, she further maintained that degenerative eye diseases can wreck havoc on this process. When they damage the retina, the image in front of you never gets further than the eyeball; the chain is broken.

    A report from the genius behind defends that, this is what makes the technology that Nirenberg has built rather remarkable. She has found a way to transmit a visual code directly to the brain, bypassing damaged cells in the eye. In other words, she can help the blind see again.

  • Dress Code!

    There is much to support the view that it is clothes that wear us, and not we, them; we may make them take the mould of arm or breast, but they mould our hearts, our brains, our tongues to their liking.”

    These are the words of Virginia Woolf, a British novelist and essayist who lived between 1882 and 1941. It is pointless to argue against the fact that our dressing reflects who we are. As a public speaker, people must first get past your looks before they allow your ideas to get to them. We know first impressions are not always correct but only few people go beyond it to find out who the real person is.

    Thomas Fuller, a British clergyman and author said, “Good clothes open all doors”. If you are not sure it opens “all” doors, I can at least assure you that it opens a lot of doors. There are specific dresses appropriate for specific places but there is something they all have in common- decency. It is very important for you to represent the ideas you advocate. I have the pleasure of sharing with you a book I read on the subject of dress code, as it relates to general values. Interestingly, it is a play and it paints a clear picture of our struggle between what we desire and what is right. Here is a brief profile of the playwright:

    Dr. Goke Okeowo

    Dr. Goke Okeowo is a Chief Lecturer at the Federal College of Education, Okene. With a degree in English, and Masters and Ph.D degrees in Guidance and Counselling, Dr. Okeowo is multi-talented, being a teacher, an author, a playwright, a poet, a music evangelist and a counselling psychologist. Apart from his scholarly publications in national and international journals, he has also published other works such as Obatala, god of creation (a drama) and Orthopaedic Princess (a collection of poetry and anecdotes). This award winning educational administrator and trainer is also a Fellow of the Civilian Institute of Democratic Administration of Ghana (FCIDA-Ghana). I present to you the play titled…

    Dress Code My Arse!

    The play focuses on the journey of a young university fresher, Adesewa. She comes from a god-fearing and disciplined family. The first experience of Adesewa at the Wazobia University is that of culture shock because one of her roommates, Jovita, has a notorious dress sense that is reflective of a lot of other students on campus. Not long after the session begins, the Student Union starts to prepare to elect its officials, having three major contestants for the post of the President- Bature, John Bull and Lukeman Orlando. Unfortunately, the campus cult group prefers Orlando, not because  he is currently a member, but because they believe they can use him to fight their battles, particularly the “stupid dress code” rule that the university management is about to introduce. At a Student Union Congress, the contestants declare their manifestoes but the cultists help Orlando to win. The aftermath of the victory is that the cult starts to operate freely on campus. The most significant of its operations is the attack on the Association of Campus Moralists (ACM) that is fully in support of the dress code rule, with Adesewa as a prominent member. Finally, Orlando’s actions backfire and an impeachment process begins against him. After losing everything, he seeks the help of a counselor who helps him to put the pieces of his life together. In the mean time, Adesewa is seen as a model of what a responsible student should be.

    Significant Points

    Apart from the fact that the play is quite engaging, I find some things to be particularly relevant to public speaking:

    1. Dress Code: a wise man said the way you dress is the way you will be addressed. Your image is a major part of your credibility. As a public speaker, never dress to impress or distract; rather, let your dress complement your message. Your message is what you want your listeners to hear, but your life is what they want to see.

    2. Effective Communication: while delivering the manifestoes in the play, I noticed that the three contestants exhibited three different traits. Bature is incoherent and unsure of himself. He stammers, not because of his nature, but because he is tensed and scared. Not only does he use quotes he is not sure of, some are even out of context. And have I mentioned that he has little control over his emotions? After getting frustrated because people are not favourable towards him, he abuses them all and stamps off the stage. John Bull’s presentation is intelligent and well presented. His challenges, however, include his speech being too long. Lukeman Orlando says nothing in particular, but he uses heavy grammar and lofty expressions that blow the people away. He is careful not to promise anything but the audience is too carried away by the grammar to notice.

    The Foreword of the play Dress Code My Arse! was written by Professor Ayo Akinwale, a lecturer in the Department of Performing Arts, University of Ilorin, a veteran actor and a renowned theatre director. He stated that youths should not throw away the African culture in their contact with Euro-American cultures especially in the area of dressing. He observed that unfortunately, youths overlook the decent manner of dressing in the West just to copy the indecent and shoddy ones. After recommending the play to parents and students, he said, “I hereby recommend this play to institutions of higher learning and to the Nigerian Government as a play for the WAEC or NECO examinations, so that our children could learn a thing or two.”

  • Cracking the code of change

    Studying change and leadership is one of my passions. I’ve dedicated quality time over the years in studying how societies change and the effect leadership plays in influencing change. From Singapore to China, from Ghana to India and elsewhere I’ve read about how hitherto hopeless situations are turned around, some almost in the realm of miracle. In all these transformations, the Bible singled out the “renewing of your minds” as a key factor because it is in the mind that ideas are toyed with and formed, and it is better done when one is young and open to receiving positive ideas.

    I participated in two conferences last week – the annual SWAT leadership academy and the 13th edition of our Coca-Cola/NBC sponsored Campuslife Correspondents’ capacity building workshop – which gave me hope that all is not lost after all regarding our dear country Nigeria despite the almost endless bombardment of negative news we hear and read about daily.

    At the Strategic learning, Work ethics, Attitude, Technology (SWAT) Leadership Academy where I co-presented a paper on reading and writing with my partner Desmond Ekeh, I met a group of dedicated and passionate undergraduates and graduates from 40 higher institutions in Nigeria and other African countries cutting across various disciplines engaged in activities that will definitely secure their future in an era where role models are becoming a rarity.

    Led by Evangelist Emmanuel Emeh, a minister in the International Church of Christ (ICOC), the SWAT Leadership Academy is a not-for-profit, faith based leadership and citizenship training initiative for University and other College students, operating from Nigeria with a widespread international chain of affiliates. Its core strategy and approach rests on the quadrant of SWAT and is tailored after the hardcore discipline of the elite special operations tactical unit found in some national law enforcement agencies.

    Since its debut in 2009, the annual International Campus Leadership Conference (ICLC) is held annually. This has since grown to becoming a significant rallying point for many University and other college students, not just in Nigeria and West Africa, but has also attracted participants from other African countries and vacationers from Europe and the United States of America.

    This five-day grooming event has consistently provided an incredible opportunity for cross culture interaction, academic enlightenment, skills empowerment and Leadership transformation amongst others.

    What I found interesting about the leadership academy is the core focus of impartation of leadership values and provision of relevant mentorship and tools needed to build a generation of young men and women who will in turn impact their immediate community and country at large. This starts from a monthly leadership focused seminars from the beginning of each year. Fallout of these seminars is the call to action for each participant to engage in individual or group social and community service. An exclusive time out with a renowned personality always follows such interaction.

    These are geared toward building generations of dynamic and hardworking men and women with character, honour and self-discipline. I met and interacted with almost 200 students and the passion they exude for what they do is almost infectious.

    Even though participants from Liberia, Sierra Leone, Cote d’ Ivoire and Ghana were prevented from coming for the conference by their governments due to the Ebola health crisis, I still found some students from Cote d’ Ivoire who came despite threats that they won’t be allowed back home once their passports are stamped that they visited Nigeria! That should serve as lessons in determination and that the conference has things to offer that the eyes cannot see.

    A very zealous Emmanuel Emeh told me all registrations are done online. “If you respond by filling our online form, we evaluate your health data and when we recognize that you are ready to be impacted with what we are offering, you are in. So many participants here are known to the organisers only when they arrive here,” he said.

    Regardless of the financial challenge of providing accommodation and feeding for hundreds of students for five days, this minister of the gospel in all sense of the word said support comes mainly in kind from some corporate organisations and brands. “The International Church of Christ is our biggest donour. A lot of brands have been supporting as well, but majorly in kind. Globacom gave us lots of materials, some FMCGs and banks have also provided things intermittently.

    “We are not really there yet in terms of financial support but we are really encouraged by the appreciation shown by those who supported us this year.  Two of our supporters visited twice. They came late evening, unannounced and they were quite impressed with what they saw. They promptly made the commitment to support in cash and kind next year. We are really hopeful that next year, we will achieve much more in the area of sponsorship.”

    After spending time with Emeh and the students, I left with the conviction that the country’s future is bright. I saw some students who started when they were in medical school but are now qualified doctors offering services free of charge to their colleagues at the camp. The same goes for other professionals as well. The artists among them ensured that they did not leave the venue – Eko tourist resort – the way they met it.

    Our campus correspondents from the capacity building workshop also had a nice time as they were taken through two lectures under the theme ‘Towards a sustainable environment.’ Mrs. Iwalola Akin-Jimoh, executive director of Ovie Brume Foundation and Seun Akioye of The Nation presented papers in line with the theme. For the first time, we had a panel session where alumni of campuslife recounted how the platform prepared them for the future.

    One of them, Jumoke Awe, who was quite emotional revealed how the late editor and initiator of The Nation’s campuslife, Mrs. Ngozi Agbo gave her “wings to fly.” Today Jumoke runs a consultancy employing seven workers. “Campuslife and aunty Ngozi prepared me to take my destiny in my hands by thinking how to create jobs and not to depend on the government. Today, I’m a brand strategist and run my own firm”

    Femi Asu, who is now a reporter with Business Day newspaper and Francis Egwuatu of the Federal University of Technology Owerri – who won the Mr. Universe Nigeria 2014 competition – were also filled with praise for what the platform taught them and the opportunities it opened. They all commended the sponsors for their support. The campuslifers, as they fondly call themselves, ended the day by interacting with the students at the SWAT academy synergizing what they learnt at both conferences.

    As we took our students back to their hotel it wasn’t lost on me that there is a massive global search for a new breed of leaders who have what it takes to lead and do things differently politically, socially, economically and spiritually, this is even more pronounced in Nigeria and Africa.

    Nations and organisations are constantly looking out for competent leaders who will lead them to the realization of their corporate goals and destinies. The failure of the previous generations of leaders has now turned the spotlight on the emerging generation of leaders which is what these two conferences set out to achieve. But the question however is; are they prepared to lead where others have failed?” From what I observed, they are prepared.

    As a parting shot, I identified five key points they should keep close to their chest as they face the leadership challenge of the future. These are: vision, courage, integrity, servant leadership and demonstrable faith in their abilities. I strongly believe that it is always better to prepare for leadership responsibilities and not have an opportunity to lead than to take on a leadership responsibility for which you have not been prepared.

    The complexities of the 21st century require that leaders be extremely visionary. It is expected of leaders that they develop the capacity to see more than their followers. It is also imperative that they develop the capacity to see farther than and faster than others see. However, it is important to note that beyond seeing more than, farther than and faster than their followers, there is an overarching need that as leaders, they need to develop the capacity to see more clearly than their followers. Clarity of vision and purpose is therefore a critical success factor for all would-be leaders.

  • ‘Repeal Section 127 of Criminal Code’

    ‘Repeal Section 127 of Criminal Code’

    Emeritus Professor, Adedokun Adeyemi has suggested that Section 127 of the Criminal Code, which prohibits compounding of felony, be repealed under the administration of criminal justice .

    In its place, he suggested that Section 339 of the CPC “should now be more boldly adopted generally in statutory provisions to enable the present widespread practice of compounding of criminal offences become widely adopted without any fetters, through statutory endorsement.”

    Compounding a criminal offence in the criminal process can be undertaken by either the victim or the prosecutor and the object is to enable the victim or the prosecutorial authority to settle the matter without necessarily having to go through the judicial process, by accepting restitution or compensation in total settlement of the criminal matter.

    Adeyemi made the suggestion in a paper, Public Prosecution and the Nigerian Criminal Process delivered at the 12th Training Course for Public Prosecutors at the Nigerian Institute for Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), University of Lagos (UNILAG), Akoka, Lagos.

    Prof. Adeyemi, who is a former Dean, Faculty of Law, said he made the suggestion because there is no statutory provision in Nigeria prohibiting compounding of misdemeanours and other simple offences and for the fact that Section 127 of the Criminal Code is contrary to the culture of Nigerians.

    According to him, Nigerians, by their tradition have always sought to settle the bulk of criminal disputes by compounding the offences whether felony or not.

    According to him, about 87.75 per cent of criminal matters are being compounded by the police all the time in their various stations explaining that the cases that are brought to court are mere 12.25 per cent of criminal matters that are committed.

    “It is now time for section 127 of the Criminal Code to be repealed’ he said, adding that Nigerians have demonstrated over time that they are more interested in getting restitution or compensation than for the defendant to go to jail without anything coming to them in the form of compensation.

    The Professor of law also called for the separation of the office of the Attorney General and the Ministry of justice for better dispensation of justice and administration of criminal justice.

    He recalled that when the late Chief Rotimi Willaims was Attorney General of the defunct Western Region, he was not a cabinet member.

    “We should not have Minister of Justice at all. We should simply have only Attorney General so that the AG, even when he attends cabinet meetings is just an ex-officio member of the cabinet. He is also not a member of the cabinet who has a right to vote.

    “Let him remain a pure professional who can be subjected to professional rule. But at present, he is half professional, half political. That is not good enough for a man who is supposed to be performing purely professional function. The AG either for federal or state must remain AG and not Minister”, he stressed.

    The emeritus professor also stated that investigating authority has no power to prosecute cases saying, “this is because the objectivity required for judicial exercise of the prosecutorial discretion stands to be jeopardised where the investigating authority is also the prosecuting authority.”

    He argued that if there is corruption in the course of investigation, it would taint the process of prosecution.

    Prof. Adeyemi described the prosecutorial process as the selection pivot for the proper functioning of the criminal process.

    He stressed: “if cases are appropriately selected for prosecution or excluded, then the criminal process will be able to perform efficiently its functions of enabling the criminal process perform its own function of containing the incidents of crime in the society whilst an inappropriate selection process will result in the failure of the criminal process to achieve its assigned aim of crime containment.”

    IDirector General of the institute who was represented by Prof. Lanre Fagbohun lamented that criminal activities are developing with high level of sophistication in the country.

    He remarked that these would pose a lot of challenges to prosecutors and called for the development of strategies to meet the challenges and combating of crime in the country.

     

  • Will this Code reform the police?

    Will this Code reform the police?

    For years, the Police have battled to shed the toga of indiscipline and corruption. They have been implicated in frequent human rights violations, including extra-judicial killings, torture, arbitrary arrests and detention. Two weeks ago, the leadership launched a Code of Conduct for policemen. Its aim is to create a disciplined and ethical police. Many see something good in the Code; others, including lawyers, believe more needs to be done to make the police efficient. . JOSEPH JIBUEZE reports.The police have launched a “special” Code of Conduct and Professional Standards for its officers and men. The “Accountability Code” is applicable to all officers.

    Deputy Force Public Relations Officer Frank Mba, a Chief Superintendent of Police, said the code is a set of rules collated and formulated to guide and regulate the behaviour of police officers in Nigeria – while on or off duty.

    According to him, the code contains standard policing rules as well as contemporary international best practices in law enforcement as available in various United Nations Conventions, the 1999 Constitution, Police Act and Regulations and other domestic statutes.

    Mba said the code was designed to enhance efficiency and effectiveness of police services by promoting transparency, accountability and a deeper sense of civilian oversight on police activities. It is further intended to promote discipline, professionalism and strict adherence to due process in police activities and operations.

    President Goodluck Jonathan, represented by Vice-President Namadi Sambo, at the launch, urged the officers and men to uphold the code “politely and properly without fear or favour,’’ warning them against ‘’employing unnecessary violence and accepting inducements”.

    He said: “Let me, however, emphasise that given the laudable objectives the Code of Conduct sets out to achieve, its strict and across-the-board enforcement must be given priority by the police high command.

    “I believe that the code is simple and easy for all police officers and members of the public to understand. All police officers must be fully aware of its provisions and must strive at all times to live up to its standards.

    “I remind you that your badge is a symbol of public trust. You must, therefore, enforce the law politely and properly without fear or favour, never employing unnecessary violence and never accepting inducements.”

    Jonathan directed that a quarterly assessment of compliance with the code should be submitted to his office to enable him monitor overall improvement or otherwise.

    Abubakar said the code would be strictly adhered to and its implementation monitored.

    Analysts said introducing new set of codes is not the big issue. It is getting the men to operate by those rules that matters the most.

    The force has been under virulent attacks and criticisms by the public, and by some international agencies such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.

    Granted, the police is faced with endemic problems associated with recruiting, training, inefficiency, and indiscipline, and its men still lack expertise in specialised fields.

    Before Abubakar’s coming, corruption and dishonesty were widespread, evident in brazen extortions at various police checkpoints, most of them illegal.

    This engendered a low level of public confidence, failure to report crimes, and tendencies to resort to self-help. The core functions of the police in community service, crime prevention, detection, and investigation are still backward. The Human Rights Watch, in its last report, said as in previous years, the “undisciplined” Nigeria Police Force has been involved in frequent human rights violations, including extrajudicial killings, torture, arbitrary arrests, and extortion-related abuses.”

    It alleged the police routinely solicit bribes from victims to investigate crimes and from suspects to drop investigations.

    Besides, it said embezzlement of police funds is rife among senior police officials who also often demand ‘returns’ from money extorted from the public by their subordinates.

    The police is said to have, through the years, relied on ‘Police Force Order 237’ to commit extrajudicial killings. The order allows the police to shoot any suspect or detainees trying to escape or avoid arrest.

    Hiding under the cover of the order, policemen are said to have perpetrated unlawful killings of 7,195 persons in four years, out of which 2,500 were detainees.

    Amnesty International, in its last report on police activities in Nigeria, said: “Police operations remained characterised by human rights violations. Hundreds of people were unlawfully killed, often before or during arrests on the street.

    “Others were tortured to death in police detention. Many such unlawful killings may have constituted extrajudicial executions. Many people disappeared from police custody. Few police officers were held accountable, leaving relatives of those killed or disappeared without justice. Police increasingly wore plain clothes or uniforms without identification, making it much harder for people to complain about individual officers.”

    Analysts said despite the good intentions of the government and police leadership, the code, which for them is not in any way new, will most likely change nothing. A lot more is involved, they said.

    For them, something more than a convention is needed to bring the needed change. More fundamental reforms, political will, and transparency are needed, they added.

    Critics are quick to point at several reforms and investigative panels had been set up to transform the force but their reports have remained largely unimplemented. For instance, the White Paper of AIG Parry Osayande (rtd) panel, submitted last August, is yet to be out.

    While reforms are still awaited along with the required legal backup in form of a Police Reform Act by the National Assembly, it has been pointed out that the remuneration of officers has to be reviewed regularly.

    Experts say reform is needed in the recruitment process to avoid enlisting officers with criminal records. There also needs to be established a reliable system for the public to complain about and to the police.

    Observers said for the code to work, the police must be motivated, beginning with their welfare and provision of basic working tools. They also need to be properly trained and equipped.

    With Nigeria under-policed due to inadequate manpower and funds, many hope that the call for state police may be given some consideration in the ongoing Constitution amendment.

    It has been suggested that police matters should be included in the concurrent legislative list. The idea is that with state High Courts already in place, state police will complete the justice sector at the state level and make for a more effective policing and justice system.

    Besides, and more importantly, factors such as sustained economic growth, demands for better governance, stronger civil society and improved access to information and communication technology will gradually contribute to a better human rights situation, in which the police plays a very critical role.

    The question is whether Nigeria’s political leadership will embrace these changes or see them as a threat to their hold on power.

    Lawyers, including human rights activists, spoke on how to get the police Nigeria deserves, beyond the launch of a new set of conduct code.

    A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Emeka Ngige, said the Police Service Commission ought to issue the code.

    To him, police authorities have not displayed high sense of morality in the discharge of their duties to inspire obedience among the rank and file.

    Ngige said: “The so-called Code of Conduct is dead on arrival! Not with the police’ shoddy handling of the murder of Olaitan Oyerinde which has gravely damaged its image.

    “The present leadership of Nigeria Police Force is ill-suited to present an acceptable code of conduct when it is involved in cover-up or suppression of murder investigation.

    “In any event, the appropriate organ to issue a code of conduct for police officers is the Police Service Commission, not the Inspector-General of Police.

    “In addition, the so-called Code of Conduct has no sanction for its breach, so it’s a red herring, a ruse and a brutum fulmen.

    “Unless and until explanations are offered on Olaitan’s murder, the NPF may not be taken seriously in all its future programmes.”

    Executive Director, Access to Justice (AJ), Mr Joseph Otteh said while the provisions of the code are laudable, more is required to achieve the dream police Nigeria needs.

    For instance, he said the Police Service Commission ought to do more in discharging its disciplinary role over the police.

    He said: “The provisions of this Code of Conduct and Professional Standards are unarguably helpful in improving the delivery of policing services; when applied to an institution that is serious about improving the quality of the services it offers, it will make a world of difference.

    “Unfortunately, I fear it will not hold out much hope for any change in the police. The Nigeria Police Force is too much of a farce right now, and, rather than repair, it shows worsening dysfunctionalisation each passing day.

    “My view is that it will take a lot more than a Code of Conduct right now to begin the process of fixing the deep flaws of the force. Maybe the Code is a good point of departure, but left alone, without strong political action to reform the police force, it will produce nothing.

    “It will amount to no more than the several regulations in force to regulate the police force that have themselves become dead letter law.

    “Even the Police Service Commission that is empowered to execise disciplinary oversight over the Police and should therefore enforce the Code of Conduct is inert, unethusiastic, and is sleep walking over its responsibilities.”

    Constitutional lawyer Mr Ike Ofuokwu said even the best set of rules without right working conditions is useless.

    His words: “The Code of Conduct for the police is a step in the right direction, but the issue here is the mindset of majority of this policemen while joining the force. They have always had rules and regulations.

    “And of what value is the code of conduct without a better working condition? Does this code capture patrol vehicles without petrol, a police officer using his own resources to buy his official uniform, the police station being in darkness due to power outage, sending him on new posting without accommodation?

    “The first code of conduct is for the Federal Government to make adequate provision for proper funding for the police and ensuring its proper utilisation. This will be in contrast to giving them guns and asking them to go and cater for themselves.

    “I recommend a surgical operation from the point of recruitment and training to postings and promotions. Godfathersim and quota should be jettisoned for merit and excellence.”

    A lawyer and law lecturer at the University of Lagos, Mr Wahab Shittu said a code of conduct or ethics to regulate the police force is a healthy development as any society whose policing is without guiding rules and regulations is prone to impunity.

    He added: “However, rules alone will not address the culture of impunity in the force if such is not backed with the requisite political will on the part of the leadership on such fundamentals as the structure, operations, orientation, training, discipline as well as the philosophy of the Nigerian police force.

    “Significantly, what is essentially lacking in our force as presently constituted is the absence of a clear philosophy guiding its operations.

    “For example, we are yet to grapple with the kind of police force that we actually want and more importantly the orientation of policing should shift from connotation of force to that of service as well as sensitising the people to engage the police as friends rather than foes willing to undo the society.

    “The barracks mentality must gradually be phased out as the police is sensitized to see itself as an integral element of the society whose challenges and expectations it must strive to satisfy at all times.

    “There is also the imperative of putting in place machinery for the enforcement of the rules embodied in the code of conduct so that the rules do not just reflect fine theories on paper.”

    Executive Director, Legal Defence and Accountability Project (LEDAP), Mr Chino Obianwu said the police had enough codes of conduct in the Force Orders.

    He called for an independent board or commission to act as watchdog of the police.

    Obianwu said: “Mere code of conduct without effective and transparent means of enforcement makes no meaning. The Police has enough code of conduct as contained in Force Orders regulations.

    “What police authorities need to do is to set up truly public complaint system where the process of handling complaints from the public will be transparent and sincere.

    “At the moment police cover up one another. Police cannot police itself. We need external oversight managed by an independent expert board.”

    An Abuja-based lawyer, Iheanyi Maraizu, said the code needs to be strictly enforced to achieve its purpose.

    “In my humble view, the more launching of a code of conduct will not make any difference if the code is not strictly enforced.

    “The problem has never been the absence of a code. The problem has always been pervasive corruption, the absence of leadership by example, as well as the persistent failure to properly motivate and equip the police.

    “My view, therefore is that the launching of the code is good, but not enough. The leadership of the force must lead by example. Banish corruption in the force and address the issue of ill-motivation and ill-equipment of its personnel. Anything short of these will be tantamount to a waste of time,” Maraizu said.

    A Lagos lawyer, Mr Udoka Ejilibe, said the police leadership should be commended for coming up with a code of ethics for its men.

    He added: “It should be noted that this code is not the first. The problem is that the people it is written for do not feel obligated to live by such codes. We need more than codes.”