Police is your friend

(a) Prevention and detection of crime  (b) Apprehension of offenders (c) The preservation of law and order (d) The protection of life and property, & (e) The due enforcement of all laws and regulations with which they are directly charged.The law in its wisdom went further to state the standard of conduct as well as […]

(a) Prevention and detection of crime  (b) Apprehension of offenders (c) The preservation of law and order (d) The protection of life and property, & (e) The due enforcement of all laws and regulations with which they are directly charged.
The law in its wisdom went further to state the standard of conduct as well as attributes meant to be inherent in a police officer which, if followed strictly, would make Nigeria a better place to live in. By virtue of Section (340) Nigeria Police Regulations further state;
A police officer is required to develop the attributes of
• Efficiency and thoroughness, meticulous attention to details in the performance of his/her duties.
• Courtesy, forbearance and helpfulness in his/her dealings with members of the public.
• Integrity, in refusing to allow religious, racial, political or personal feelings, or other considerations to influence him in the execution of his/her duties.
• Impartiality in the avoidance of feelings of vindictiveness or the showing of vindictiveness towards offenders.
• Strict truthfulness in his/her handling of investigations and in the giving of evidence.
From the above, a keen and observant reader would clearly see that it is the intent of the laws of the land, that not only should the police protect our lives and properties, but also, that such duties be performed in a very courteous  way.  These provisions of the law portray a picture of a police that can be trusted 100% by the citizenry to call a friend; this however, is not the case in Nigeria.
The Nigeria Police Force most often than not, works in completely opposite manner from what is provided for in its regulations. Bearing this in mind, let’s take ‘bail’ as a point of focus.
Bail by definition is the procedure by which a person arrested for an offense is released on security being taken for his appearance on a particular day and place. Bail is a right and not a favour or privilege; hence, it should not be denied anyone in police custody that demands it except in capital offenses.
It is not in contention that Police Officers possess the constitutional power to detain anybody, against whom they have reasonable suspicion over a crime while investigation is still in progress.  What is worthy of discuss however, is the attitude and behaviours of our police officers when a suspect has crossed the counter in our various police stations spread across the country. My heart goes out to citizens of this beloved country who have found themselves in this bizarre situation without the aid or assistance of a lawyer, reason being that our police officers have turned bail into a money making venture.
The police has no discretion as to whether or not to grant a person in custody bail unless the offence committed is a serious one {e.g. treason, murder, armed robbery e.t.c}, bail must be granted free as it is a right and so does not carry a fee or gratification.  But alas, the reverse happens to be the case, even when a legal practitioner is present they still find ways to make the process frustrating!
Let us not forget that ‘bail’ is just one of the many ways that the police have contributed to the under development of this great country of ours, how about the use of assault rifles to intimidate, oppress and scare citizens it is meant to protect?
If a police officer can assault young lawyers on numerous occasions and nothing is done to discipline such defaulting police officer, imagine what happens when an ordinary citizen is assaulted?
The Nigeria Police Force can only be my friend when there’s a complete over hauling and re-orientation of the Nigeria police, meaning, a police officer should be sound enough to be able to read and write without difficulty or if not good enough, at least should be able to understand the tenets and etiquettes guiding his profession.
It is important to note that there are good police officers in the force who work with integrity and honesty for the good of the force, but the bad eggs far outweigh the good ones and that’s where the problem lies.

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