Saints and sinners

According to him, it can either put bread on your table or destroy you when you drop that uniform. Last week I took a swipe at the driving behaviours of learners with the title, “Learners or lunatics.” In the course of the piece which ran for two weeks, I expressed the hope that my readers […]

According to him, it can either put bread on your table or destroy you when you drop that uniform. Last week I took a swipe at the driving behaviours of learners with the title, “Learners or lunatics.” In the course of the piece which ran for two weeks, I expressed the hope that my readers won’t slice me for referring to learners as lunatics. I was indeed excited to receive a consoling response from a retired officer from one of the services who said, ’’ Just finished reading your article on learners or lunatics. You don’t owe anybody apology. Only a lunatic will knowingly put others at risk. A lady abused me last week because I checked for driving with her baby on her lap on Ago Palace way. Enforce the regulations with the Police to drive home the point, he summed up.
Today, I wish to focus on us in uniform but before I do, let me tell you a story. Sometime in 2009, I had the rare honour of travelling to California in the United States of a America on a one week training in Law Enforcement. The trip was courtesy of the Government of the United States of America. Incidentally, it was my first trip to the US. Within the period, we visited the California Highway patrol, National Guard and the San Francisco Police Department. The visit to San Francisco was quite instructive. Capt. Smith, an Air force Officer was our guide. Smith as we came to refer to him all through the training was for my colleagues and I, an ideal of an officer-simple, humble and quite friendly. On the day of the visit, traffic was heavy and the weather friendly, As was his habit most days while driving, our guide would busy himself, making contacts through phone to confirm the programme of the day. On this fateful day, while driving and phoning, we were suddenly spotted by a police man on his bike who with the wave of his hands, warned our guide to desist from calling behind the wheels. Clad in his uniform and driving a marked vehicle belonging to the government our guide quickly dropped his phone. Strangely after we were left off the hock by the Policeman, Smith suddenly turned to us and asked a very strange question on why we were pulled over. I quickly reminded him that he had been making calls while driving.
This scenario which is the trust of my write-up occurred on our way to the San Francisco Police Department. I can’t remember how long we drove from Sacramento to San Francisco. When we arrived, due to the heavy traffic, we kept driving in circles looking for a parking lot to no avail. Disturbed by this development and seeing the privileged poison we were, with an officer attached to the National Guard, in an American Government vehicle as our guide, I reasoned that we could just park anywhere and proceed. After severally trials without any luck, I quietly teased Smith to park anywhere assuring him that we were immune and untouchable. Texas –born Smith laughed at my stupidity and told me that he dared not do that or  he would end up with his first ticket and a dent on his career.
Smith’ conduct did not come to me as a surprise. The American environment makes no exception for any citizen. And as uniform personnel, there is a high level of decency and decorum expected by anyone in uniform
This explains why shortly before graduating from the University of Lagos, I craved so much to join the Nigerian Army. What inspired me was the high level of discipline that pervades the Military. Such is meant to be the case in all uniform services,. After all one of the hallmark of the uniform is the oath to protect the citizenry and the territorial integrity of our dearest nation. Ironically, lately there has become an increasing number of mannerisms by uniform personnel that is opposed to what the norm should be. Unfortunately, although I don’t have all the details, I can conveniently say here that no uniform service is without its own share of what one of my friends once described as recklessness.
 . Daily and across the country, it is common to see uniform personnel brazenly display open disregard for the laws of the land. A handful drive against the flow of traffic. While a good number believe they are untouchables and above the law. Some even go to the extent of assaulting other uniform personnel whose statutory responsibility is to pretext them from killing themselves. In worst scenarios; some boldly threaten uniform personnel with guns bought with tax payers’ money for daring to stop them on the road. Others in a commando style invade Command s on the grounds that a vehicle belonging to a colleague was impounded for certain infractions. There are numerous sour examples that abound. As Sector Commander, Lagos State, I was a victim. My crime was that my men impounded a vehicle belonging to a retired officer. Four armed uniformed personnel in camouflage invaded my office with threats to shoot. While in Abuja as Sector Commander, I personally witnessed uniform personnel pull out his service pistol and threaten to shoot my officers for daring to insist he drives by the rules. Just recently, an army officer and his girlfriend ran away after the car in which they were travelling in killed an officer of the Corps serving in Akwanga and injured 3 others along Keffi-Akwanga highway. There crude behaviours are rarely seen in developed societies including neighbouring Countries. In the words of the retired Colonel, I believe that Uniform personnel owe this country and should therefore conduct themselves better.