Police brutality is not only characterized by “accidental discharges” or harassment of members of the public. It extends to domestic violence and the abuse their spouses.
This however can be traced to the training policemen receive or their recruitment process which obviously lacked enough training on respect for human rights and the capability to remain calm in every situation, having in mind that the police should be a friend to everyone.
In 2014, some civil society organizations collaborated with the Nigeria Police to develop a police training curriculum that would replace the out-dated colonial police training manual used in police training institutions.
The reasons were that the old curriculum lacked human rights content, a gap which the new manual set out to fill and further upgrade it to international standards for law enforcement education.
The Nigeria Police Force formally adopted the new training curriculum and the manual for use in police training institutions and for all level of police training and retraining.
But despite the adoption of the new curriculum by the Force, police officers have continued to abuse the human rights of Nigerian citizens including their spouses.
Some security experts however suggested that police officers go through psychological evaluation before being recruited and also periodically while on the job. Some people also attributed their unprofessional acts to their poor welfare.
Sylvester Ihejirika, 27, narrated how he bought a 1999 model of Toyota Sienna from a car dealer in Port Harcourt for which he had a balance of N10, 000 to pay. He said the car dealer’s stern demand for the balance turned to threats and finally police arrest.
He was detained at the Olusegun Obasanjo Police Command in Port Harcourt for a day and later transferred to Benin, Edo State, where he spent another day in police custody. Thereafter, he was moved to Obada in Ogun State where he was held in police detention for over two weeks.
Mr. Ihejirika said he was beaten, maltreated, and his family members were extorted over N170, 000, part of the money which was paid through electronic bank transfer to one investigative police officer known as ‘Scorpion.’
During his ordeal, Mr. Ihejirika said he was not initially allowed to contact his lawyer or family member. He was finally released after two weeks in detention and without any explanation.
Another victim of police brutality, Paul Nwachukwu, who was detained at the same place with Mr. Ihejirika, corroborated his story concerning the misconducts of police officers at Zone 2 Special Intervention Force, Abeokuta, and especially the officer called ‘Scorpion.’
Blessing Taiwo, a 43-year-old Administrative Officer with Afri-Invest, Lagos, was arrested by the police on the accusation by her boss, Abiola Ojo-Sanni that she stole about $50,000 from the office while she travelled.
Her case was transferred, from the Ikoyi Division where she was arrested, to the Anti-Kidnapping Unit in Panti, Yaba.
She said while in detention, the police extorted various sums of money from her family and colleagues who were also detained along with her, adding that her younger sister and the wife of one of the detainees were sexually harassed by men of the Anti-kidnapping Unit.
Her case attracted media attention which led former Lagos Commissioner of Police ordering an investigation into the sexual harassment claims. The report indicted the officers was made public and erring officers were dealt with.
One officer Michael Kolawole who was alleged to have turned into a terror to residence in Ogun state was said to constantly abuse anybody that refuses to bribe him even when they have committed no offence.
According to information, Officer Michael was said to be notorious in harassing both male and female in the community. He was also reported to have been colluding with internet fraudsters a.k.a Yahoo boys in the society while harassing them for money at the same time.
Michael’s abusive attitude was eventually reported to the Police authority by some of his victims. Investigation into his abusive claims was launched and he has been transferred to the state police headquarters for further investigation and if found guilty, disciplinary measure will be taken against him.
Some experts say that people become police officers because they seek the power and status of the job. Others say that recruits join because they have a desire to help people, but over time they become contemptuous and corrupted.
Due to the law enforcement enormous power over citizens to enable the police to keep the peace and to preserve social order, they are granted a great deal of freedom to use their judgment regarding which laws to enforce, when and against whom. This wide range of options and authority has led to the abuse of their power.
Some police officers come to see themselves not as simply enforcers of the law, but as the law itself. Every abuser frequently reminds his/her victim that it is within his/her power to deprive him/ her of his/her physical safety, security, privacy, freedom and life if and when he/she chooses.
Most abusers, however, are not able to enlist the help of the criminal justice system to carry out their threats. Officers tell their victims, "Call the police, who are they going to believe?" There is great systemic resistance against prosecuting an officer. If a victim decides to file a criminal complaint, he/she will have to present an extremely compelling story to the police and state's attorney to counter their reluctance to pursue the complaint.
He/ She will have to be able to convey that, in addition to common forms of abuse, the abuser exploits his/her professional status and power to control and to terrorize him/her. Advocates working with these victims must be knowledgeable not only about the general dynamics of domestic violence but also about police -perpetrated domestic violence tactics and the workings of the criminal justice system. Working with victims of officers involved in domestic violence has acutely created the awareness that the standard remedies are often inadequate and may even leave the victim more vulnerable.
Some officers cannot separate their career life from their personal life. They "eat, live, die" police work. Their identity is defined by their uniform. Any conflicts in their personal life are seen as a challenge to their dominance, authority, power, or control over the other person and the situation. He views everything in a black and white perspective. It is either wrong or right. There are no gray areas, leaving no room for the victim to voice her opinion or position.
The same primitive techniques used while policing the streets are now being utilised in an abusive officer's home. A continuum of abuse often involves verbal, emotional, psychological, sexual and physical violence. Physical abuse, however, is not always necessary to control the victim. Many abusers maintain control through intimidation and threats, or a reminder of the "last time." She knows what he is physically capable of.
Another trend among abusive officers is that when an officer is in trouble on the job or in trouble with his wife or girlfriend at home, he counts on his buddies to cover for him. He gives them a story that explains why he "had to do" whatever he did. Whether or not they personally condone his behavior, they may rationalize his behavior, saying he was stressed out, under a lot of pressure, or quite simply, that he's only human.
One step that needs to be taken in this direction is the overhauling of the recruitment process for the Police outfit which we believe should be reviewed such that potential recruits into the force should possess a minimum qualification of an Ordinary National Diploma (OND).
An upward review of their salary structure is also required to meet up with the reality of the current socioeconomic situation in the country. A situation where members of the force are expected to pay for their own uniform, buy exercise books and biro to enter complaints, pay for fuel or ask complainant to fuel their vehicles to bring a suspect to the station, would not provide the nation with a desired Police outfit.
It is equally important to constantly and periodically reorient and re-educate officers of the Police force to acquaint them with modern and suitable approaches in dealing with the civil society. It is imperative to note that even the British Police was at a time, one of the most reprehensible Police outfits in the world.
The role of technology and a responsible political leadership cannot be overemphasized in this regard too. This is why it is always said that, people deserves the kind of Police they have. We as a people may not achieve all this in a jiffy, but the truth is that we must take concrete steps in the right direction.
