Déjà vu!
I'm afraid there are no quick fixes to the problem of police brutality in Nigeria. A holistic approach is imperative if there were going to be any sustainable changes in the manner of operation of the police to align with respect decency and human rights. Outrage and protests against police savagery had occurred in the past, and some similar reactions emanated from concerned authorities. It ended mostly on headlines and public pronouncements. If they were real changes, we would not be at this juncture anymore.
The latest protest, galvanised by the viral video of the alleged extrajudicial killing of a young male by the Special Anti-robbery Squad (SARS), which eventually resulted in the banning of this particular unit of the Nigeria Police, is just one of horrid stories of the torture, viciousness and impunity that many Nigerians have undergone in the hands of the officers. It appeared there was a total breakdown of any mechanism for accountability and check and balances in SARS. Officers in these units operated as police, prosecutors and judges rolled into one. It is not uncommon for members of the team to openly threaten to "waste your life" (a flippant disregard to the sanctity of life, where it is so cheap to be "wasted" or killed at whims without repercussion) if one does not "cooperate" with them, a tainted expression for bribery and extortion. It had reached such an extent that citizens who encountered these officers felt robbed at gunpoint by the very people who were paid to protect them from armed robbers. Such was the sad irony of the Police SARS. Numerous accounts from citizens of the various forms of brutality and brazen abuse of power by SARS abound.
However, it is crucial to realise that while attention is presently focused on SARS, there is also systemic corruption, recklessness and impunity in the regular police and other security operatives, including the military. It is, therefore, a situation that requires a systemic approach in dealing with the dysfunction and restoring the confidence of citizens in the police and other security operatives. In the line of my work as a forensic pathologist, I have come into contact and worked with many police offices, mainly in the course of forensic death investigation, and sexual violence. There are a good number of officers who are committed to operating within professional and ethical boundaries, and I have the opportunity of working with them. There are equally some who are emblematic of police corruption and abuse of power. It is, therefore, not a blanket condemnation of the entire Nigeria Police, nor is it a validation of the regular police or other non-SARS units in the police. Instead, it is a call to take a lot at the structures in place, from police recruitment, training and retraining, deployment, welfare and dignity, and related considerations. Dissolution of SARS and redeployment the same scurrilous officers to other units of the police is simply a change of address. Only a fundamental shift in the structure and function of the police may yield the needed result. And it is not impossible to attain. The outcome will be better, both for the police and citizenry.
Police Recruitment
There is increasing literacy level in the country, and this should reflect in the educational standard set for police recruitment, especially among the rank and file, who do most of the policing in the community. It is alarming the number of police officers at checks points and on the streets, who are unable to communicate in English, which is the official national language of government transaction. Many of the barely literate police officers, both regular and SARS, take offence to "speaking grammar" because of inherent limitation, both in literacy and communication skills. And things have gone wrong on that note. Upgrading the entering education level for federal police officers, who are usually posted around the country for service, will be a significant step in attracting a generation of police officers who are confident and can relate with members of the society, without complexes. Some proficiency in the three major languages in the country should also be part of the recruitment requirement since there is no state police in Nigeria. It is an invitation to disaster to recruit officer, who could barely communicate in English and are not proficiency in other major local languages and yet are posted to other parts of the country to interact with the citizens. Presently, such interaction often results in violence and police brutality. Communication skills, as a pre-recruitment condition, cannot be overemphasised.
The quality of background checks in Nigeria before recruitment is questionable. A robust system of background checks, preferably by an independent agency or commission, should be carried out as a critical bridge that must be crossed before a person is recruited into the police. Internal security is weaved into the fabric of all endeavours in society. Therefore, the recruitment of officers, who will be charged with the responsibility of maintaining law and order across the country, should be based on a background devoid of criminal or criminal-like activities or associations. It is so integral to the essence of a civil society that nepotism and other extraneous considerations inimical to a sustainable system must not be a feature in the recruitment of officers. Sadly, such appears to be the trend in all aspects of our national life, and it is not a surprise we have a police service that essentially reflects the state of affairs.
Training and Retraining
The training of police, from the rank and file to the senior officers, should not only be on police procedures and techniques but also on contemporary subjects in all aspects of policing. What appears to be prominent in the present training format of the police is "inbreed training": training of the police by the police for the police. It minimises a crucial aspect that should involve civilian experts and non-experts on various subjects in the tricky work of engaging with people in the real world, where, unlike in security agencies, people don't necessarily obey "orders". Rather, they tend to query such dictates and demand for their rights. Social skills and emotional intelligence should be critical components of police training and retraining programmes. And it is almost impossible to achieve an optimal training outcome in a police officer, who does not possess adequacy literacy to comprehend such training.
Police training and retraining programmes should also be contextualised. The usual recourse to "textbook" training without appropriate assessment of training needs and context is almost as ineffectual as it is mundane. It is, therefore, not surprising that despite all the resources and commitments to training, there is hardly a translation to positive impact in actual policing at the community level. There is also no visible mechanism in place for the evaluation of such training in actual practice by the police authorities. Training practically slides into a routine ritual, which is out of touch with present-day challenges and oblivious of the evolving issues in the community. To make up for this deficiency is more militarisation of the police with requests for more weapons, operational vehicles and related equipment, and high-handed approach with force and brutality against civilians.
In an occasion, I asked a police officer, supposedly working in the particular unit attending to sexual violence, if they had received training on how to treat (including the approach to interview in an appropriate ambience) persons reporting alleged sexual assault, especially rape. Apparently, there was no such training, and obviously, no implementation of such skills. It is not surprising that citizens who are victims of sexual violence dread reporting to the police. The indignity, disrespect and re-traumatisation are all too common. Training and retraining of the police require an urgent reality check.
Deployment
The federal system of policing in Nigeria means that officers are usually deployed to different parts of the country irrespective of their states of origin. This practice should be a strength as moving officers round the country for policing acquaints them with a broader knowledge and appreciation of people and their socio-cultural ethos. Police deployment to any locations should be matched with the required profile, including skills, and the community needs or peculiarity. Unfortunately, corruption, favouritism and other narrow interests appear to take centre stage in the current practice. Accountability takes the back seat, and impunity is elevated.
Welfare and Dignity
We must care for the police. The standard of living of the police rank and file is pathetic; a visit to any of the police barracks will reveal the deplorable state of housing and other essential amenities. The general condition of employment, including salary package, needs to be reviewed and upgraded. The police deserve a decent wage. Furthermore, the police stations should be equipped with the necessary facilities that will enhance the work they do. Police stations often claim they have no stationeries to take complaints, no fuel for operational vehicle to respond to a distress call, and not uncommonly, too hungry to take necessary action!
Police officers should be treated with respect and dignity. There is a need for scrutiny of how the police hierarchy manages funds earmarked for staff welfare and infrastructure. Throwing money at issue without first understanding the root cause(s) of the decay in the living and service conditions of the police may amount to stuffing the cesspit. For a sincere start, it is necessary to admit that the police rank and file is getting a raw deal in the current system. It is in our collective interest to demand that the welfare and dignity of the police are accorded due priority.
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