Police Are Not VIPs’ Guards

Former chairman of the Police Service Commission Mr Parry Osayande once revealed, on the floor of the Senate, that over 100,000 out of the 330,000 policemen in the country were attached to “a few fortunate” individuals to carry handbags for their wives. On many occasions, former inspectors-general of police had made policy statements threatening the withdrawal of police officers from such “illegal” duties. A few days after he came into office, the current IGP Mohammed Abubakar, like his predecessors Tafa Balogun, Sunday Ehindero, Mike Okiro, Ogbonna Onovo and Hafiz Ringim, issued the same directive. On February 13, 2012, he said his order was with immediate effect.

But the withdrawal of all approved police guards -- including those donated by the Special Protection Unit and the Mobile Police Unit as well as conventional policemen sent out as guards to companies and influential citizens -- has not been implemented. Yet, the directive, if it had been heeded, would have bolstered professionalism, efficiency and integrity in the performance of police duties and raised the bar of public security. By law, only the president, vice-president, governors, council chairmen, magistrates and judges are entitled to police guards. The privilege has, however, been abused by senior police officers in charge of police commands and formations who assign junior officers to privileged individuals for pecuniary gains.

It is an absurdity carried far. The use of policemen as personal aides and guards has become a status symbol in the country. Sometimes, these officers are used for personal vendetta and in settling political scores and personal grudges against less privileged citizens.  There are instances of some public officers, who are not authorised by law but parade more than 50 armed security agents each in their entourage. Many heads of government agencies, special task forces and ministers have policemen and other security personnel drafted to protect them, their spouses and children immediately they assume office. A majority of Nigerian lawmakers are among the privileged citizens that have coveted the services of the few available security personnel in the nation.

For a country that is far behind the recommended one policeman to 10,000 persons, this is unacceptable. We know that this odious practice has endured because the beneficiaries are usually politicians, wealthy businessmen and the like that the successive IGPs could not afford to offend. Nevertheless, the police authorities are quick to acknowledge the escalating crime rate in the country, especially attacks by undesirable elements that kill, kidnap and maim innocent and law-abiding Nigerians.

It will serve greater public interest for the IGP to muster the courage to stop this patently unethical, unjust undertaking by evenly deploying the few officers available to strategic places. The police are meant to protect all of us, not just the wealthy, powerful and influential few who can afford to pay them extra fees.