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.”
