SUBMISSION OF REPORT OF THE CIVIL SOCIETY PANEL ON
POLICE REFORM IN NIGERIA
Your Excellency will recall that on
February 17, 2012, you inaugurated a nine-person Presidential Committee on the
Reform of the Nigeria Police Force chaired by Mr. Parry Osayande, Retired
Deputy Inspector General of Police. It
had five Terms of Reference on which to advise your government on measures that
can be taken to improve the performance of the Nigeria Police and restore
public confidence in the institution.
Coming against the background of
three previous Presidential Committees on Police Reform established by your
predecessors whose recommendations were neither made public nor seriously or
scrupulously implemented, the response of civil society in Nigeria to Mr.
Osayande’s Committee was expectedly mixed.
However, being of the view that the task of reforming the Nigeria Police
Force is too important to be left to government alone, key non-governmental
organisations working on police reform issues in Nigeria decided to engage the
process in a creative and proactive way through the establishment of a parallel
but complementary Civil Society Panel on Police Reform in Nigeria, using the
same terms of reference drawn by your government. The Panel operated under the auspices of the
Network on Police Reform in Nigeria (NOPRIN) with technical support and
facilitation by the CLEEN Foundation.
In order to carry out this assignment effectively, the
Panel consulted widely with stakeholders in civil society, government,
political parties, security agencies, women’s organisations, the media and the
general public. We interacted with
senior and junior police officials including the Inspector General of Police,
Mr. M.D. Abubakar, and benefited from their wealth of experience in police and
policing matters. The Panel requested
and received memoranda from the general public.
We also held public hearings in seven cities in each of Nigeria’s six
geo-political zones and the Federal Capital Territory, during which oral and
written presentations were made by members of the public and other interested
stakeholders.
We have the honour to inform Your
Excellency that the Panel has completed its work. Consequently, we hereby
submit the Report of the Panel for the consideration of the Government.
We hope that the recommendations of
this Panel, which draws heavily from major voices in civil society, will
complement those of Mr. Osayande’s Committee in guiding your Government in its
efforts to reposition and transform the Nigeria Police into an effective and
accountable public service institution.
We seize this opportunity to express
our appreciation to you Mr. President, for agreeing to receive our parallel but
complementary report. This is an
indication of the willingness of your Government to welcome alternative views
when responding to critical national challenges, and we cannot think of any
issue more critical to the survival of our nation at this juncture in our
history, than repositioning the Nigerian Police Force to effectively and
efficiently discharge its functions in partnership with the communities it
serves.
Please accept, Your Excellency, the
assurances of our highest esteem and respect.
----------------------------
Mrs. Ayo M.O. Obe
Chair
--------------------------------- ---------------------------------
Dr. Smart Otu Dr.
Abubakar Mu’azu
Member Member
--------------------------------- ---------------------------------
Mrs. Josephine Effah-Chukwuma Ms. Ayisha Osori
Member Member
--------------------------------- ----------------------------
Mr. Sam Itodo Chinedu
Nwagu
Member Secretary
---------------------------------
Mr. Innocent Chukwuma
Technical Adviser
Abbreviations
And Acronyms
AIG Assistant
Inspector General of Police
APER Annual
Performance Evaluation Report
CDHR Committee
for the Defence of Human Rights
CLEEN Centre
for Law Enforcement Education
CIB Criminal
Investigation Bureau
CID Criminal
Investigation Department
CSO Civil
Society Organisation
DIG Deputy
Inspector General of Police
EFCC Economic
and Financial Crimes Commission
FRSC Federal
Road Safety Commission
ICPC Independent
Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission
IGP Inspector
General of Police
MoPA Ministry
of Police Affairs
MOPOL Mobile
Police
NAPTIP National
Agency for the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons
NDC National
Defence College
NDLEA National
Drug Law Enforcement Agency
NIPSS National
Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies
NNPF Northern
Nigeria Police Force
NPF Nigeria
Police Force
NSCDC National
Security and Civil Defence Corps
NOPRIN Network
on Police Reform in Nigeria
PCB Police
Public Complaints Bureau
PCRC Police
Community Relations Committee
PSC Police
Service Commission
SCID State
Criminal Investigation Department
SNPF Southern
Nigeria Police Force
SSS State Security
Service
UN United Nations
Acknowledgements
In the course of its work, the CSO Panel
received valuable support, assistance and contributions in the form of ideas,
funding, suggestions, written memoranda, oral submissions, and solidarity from
individuals, organisations and institutions too numerous to list. We gratefully acknowledge these
contributions, which were made in the hope that the Nigeria Police Force will
be reformed to better serve all resident in Nigeria irrespective of social
status, religion, political affiliation, ethnicity, age or gender. Having completed this assignment, the
challenge before civil society groups in Nigeria now, is to ensure that this
report and its recommendations are adopted and implemented by the government.
Summary
Of Findings And Recommendations
1.1.1 Introduction
Official
debates about police reform in Nigeria and committees established by successive
governments to facilitate such discussions and recommendations of measures for
implementation have mostly been dominated by people with a security background
who view such assignments as their exclusive preserve. As a result, their reports have often
focussed on increasing policing capacity in the areas of personnel strength,
materials for work and welfare; as though once these are right, the NPF will be
super effective and efficient. While not
belittling the significant difference a properly resourced NPF can make in
addressing the safety and security challenges currently confronting Nigeria,
experience from other jurisdictions has shown that it requires more than this
for the police to win the confidence of the people and be effective in carrying
out their functions. Community support and participation are
critical to improving police performance, and if the people are not consulted
and their priorities factored into the reform process, their support for reform
programs cannot be guaranteed.
1.1.2
It was with this in mind, that
when the Federal Government inaugurated another Committee on reform of the NPF
in February 2012 and appeared to be following the same procedure as in the
past, civil society groups working on police reform in Nigeria felt they should
do more than send another round of memoranda.
They decided to set up a parallel but complementary Civil Society Panel
on Police Reform in Nigeria (CSO Panel).
Mrs Ayo Obe chaired the six-person Panel whose other members were Mrs Josephine
Effah-Chukwuma, Mr. Sampson Itodo, Dr. Abubakar Mu’azu, Ms Ayisha Osori, and Dr. Smart Otu. Innocent Chukwuma provided technical advice;
Chinedu Nwagu served as the Secretary and Okechukwu Nwanguma served as the CSO
liaison officer.
1.1.3
In
its work the CSO Panel paid more attention to salient issues that may not
necessarily require a great deal of money before they can be addressed, but are
often ignored in the work of government committees on Police reform. However, the CSO Panel recognizes the impact
of material deficiencies on the effectiveness of the NPF and aligns with
reports of government committees on such issues.
1.2.1 Methodology
The
Panel used a variety of complementary methodological approaches in carrying out
its functions. These were: review of extant literature, which helped it to
properly situate its work and enrich its understanding of the issues at play;
call for memoranda to enable members of the public who wanted to contribute to
work of the Panel to send written presentations; organisation of public
hearings in the six geo-political zones of Nigeria and the Federal Capital which
provided an opportunity for members of the public to make presentations in
person; bilateral interaction with key actors in the field; and a validation
workshop where the key findings of the CSO Panel were presented to civil
society representatives. The effective
combination of these approaches enhanced the Panel’s appreciation of the issues
involved in its work and placed it in a privileged position to offer the
recommendations contained in this report.
Summary of Findings and
Recommendations
1.3.1 Factors
Affecting Effective Performance by the NPF
The factors affecting police performance that were identified
by the panel include inadequate articulation of the NPF’s mission, legal
framework, specialization of functions, performance appraisal system,
duplication of policing agencies, weak oversight agencies and corruption.
1.3.2 Mission
of the Police
The Panel found the mission statement of the NPF as provided
in Section 4 of the Police Act inadequate in capturing the expectation of the
new kind of police Nigeria requires in the context of its disheartening
experience of police inefficiency and brutality and hope for a democratic
society of security and liberty. In
proposing a new mission statement for the NPF the CSO Panel is of the view that
focus should be on modelling a new police service that works in partnership
with the communities it serves.
1.3.3 Recommendations
·
The National Assembly should amend Section 4 of
the Police Act to incorporate language that emphasizes that the Nigeria Police
is a service organisation that respects human rights, works in partnership with
the community and is impartial before the law in carrying out its functions of
ensuring the security of persons and property, detecting, investigating and
activating the prosecution of offences.
·
The
Nigeria Police Force should embark on a strategic planning exercise with a view
to articulating operational vision and mission statements consistent with the
values of a civil agency and the protection of the fundamental rights
guaranteed in the Constitution of Nigeria in discharging its functions.
1.3.4 Constitutional
and Statutory Framework
The CSO Panel found the constitutional and statutory framework
under which the NPF operates to be a significant challenge to the effective
performance of its functions: Sections 214-216 create the NPF, while the Police
Act provides for its organisation, discipline, powers and duties. The Panel identified two issues in the legal
framework of the NPF: lack of operational autonomy, which has led to
politicization and lack of professionalism in the NPF, and an opaque leadership
appointment procedure, which can rob the NPF of the services of its most
competent officers at leadership levels.
1.3.5 Recommendations
·
Amend Section 215(3) of the Constitution and
sections 9(4, 5) and 10(1, 2) of the Police Act to restrict the role of the
President or Minister of Government acting on his behalf to issuing only lawful
policy directives, not operational directives, to the NPF. The amendment should
state clearly and unambiguously that operational control of the NPF and its
department/units rests with the IGP.
·
Sections 215(1) and 216(2) of the Constitution
should be amended as part of the present constitutional reform process to:
o
Provide for a competitive and transparent
process to be followed in the appointment of an IGP if the position becomes
vacant, including an open application process, screening of applicants, Senate
hearing and confirmation of the most competent person for the job;
o
Specify relevant competences and qualifications
that must be met by anybody vying for the position of IGP and other senior
command positions in the NPF, including academic qualifications and relevant
professional and management experience;
o
Guarantee security of tenure for the IGP with
one term limit of five years;
o
Stipulate processes that should be followed for
an IGP to be removed from office, including a public hearing by the Senate.
1.3.6 Structure
and Organisation of NPF
The
Panel found the NPF structured in a way that over-centralises its operations. Even though the NPF has a five-tier command
structure (Headquarter, Zonal, State, Area and Divisional Commands), too many
decisions begin and end on the desk of the IGP.
Similarly, although the NPF has seven Deputy Inspectors-General (DIGs)
who function as the heads of departments at headquarters and should lighten the
load on the IGP, the Panel found that apart from adding to the unwieldy nature
of NPF structure, the DIGs have little real work to do. Furthermore, despite an outward show of unity,
the current DIG structure does not help stability in the NPF, as all the DIGs
see themselves as IGPs in waiting and spend their time plotting for a change in
the leadership of the NPF, since the IGP has no security of tenure.
1.3.7 Recommendations
·
The NPF structure should be decentralized and
powers and resources devolved to Zonal, State, Area and Divisional Commands to
enable them effectively respond to the priority safety and security needs of
their jurisdictions.
·
The seven DIG structure should be abolished, and
the IGP should have just one DIG who should serve as his second in command.
·
The headquarter departments should be headed by
AIGs in the same way as Zonal Commands.
1.3.8 Lack
of Specialization
The CSO Panel found that lack of specialization has robbed the
NPF of the capacity to develop its personnel to become experts in different
fields of policing, a gap which impacts its ability to solve complex
crimes. With the exception of a few
specialists such as medical doctors and veterinarians, the CSO Panel found that
upon enlistment, all officers are made to carry out all duties, irrespective of
their areas of specialization, and are moved around at will from one duty post
and function to another, without prior training or preparation. The Panel observed that the lack of career
trajectory in the NPF has turned most police officers in Nigeria into
‘jacks-of-all-trades’ who in the end, are not able to master any.
1.3.9 Recommendations
·
The ‘general duty policy’ should be abolished.
Every police officer should be given a time line of five years to specialize
after recruitment, be a promotable officer or go home.
·
Diverse professionals such as criminologists,
psychologists, sociologists, lawyers, doctors, pathologists and others should
be recruited as police officers and allowed to practice their professions
within the police service, and be promotable in their areas of expertise as is
done in services such as the military.
1.3.10 Duplication
of Policing Agencies
The Panel found a government penchant for the creation of
agencies (such as the EFCC, ICPC, FRSC, NAPTIP and NDLEA) that fragment and
duplicate police functions, and are inimical to improving the effectiveness of
NPF because they not only deprive the NPF of badly needed material resources,
but also deplete its pool of human resources.
Some of these agencies, such as the EFCC, still draw their leadership
and operational personnel from the NPF.
1.3.11 Recommendation
The government should establish an inter-agency committee for
the harmonization of the functions of all agencies performing policing and
internal security functions in Nigeria with a view to:
·
Determining those that should be merged with the
NPF;
·
Delineating functions where merger is not a
feasible option;
and more importantly;
·
Working out, from leadership to operational
level, arrangements to coordinate activities that will ensure that resources
are properly shared, and that inter-agency cooperation in planning and
executing safety and security functions is enhanced.
1.3.12 Weak
Oversight Agencies
The Panel found no justification for the existence of the
Ministry of Police Affairs (MoPA) and the Police Service Commission (PSC) as
separate bodies as presently structured, organized and managed. The MoPA maintains a huge bureaucracy for the
purpose of either duplicating functions already performed or statutorily
assigned to the NPF or the Police Service Commission (PSC). The PSC on its part has been dismissed as
nothing more than “a dismal chronicle of rubber-stamping decisions taken by the
police”.
Participants at the public hearings also
criticised the lack of response to (or even acknowledgement of) complaints
about police misconduct sent to the PSC.
At the same time, concern was expressed about the unclear constitutional
area in which not only agencies such as the EFCC, ICPC, FRSC, NAPTIP, NDLEA and
NSCDC are operating, but the legal vacuum in which a variety of community-based
security initiatives are operating, and their often shaky adherence to human
rights and due process standards.
1.3.13 Recommendations
·
The Ministry of Police Affairs should be restructured
and renamed Ministry of Public Safety and Security to coordinate the activities
of government in the field of public security and discontinue the present
practice of replicating the bureaucracies of NPF and PSC. It should also be
charged with providing a regulatory framework for community initiatives on
crime prevention and creating an incentive regime to ensure that they comply
with the law and eschew human rights abuses in carrying out their functions in
rural areas or inner city communities not often covered by police patrols.
·
The PSC should be strengthened and provided with
adequate resources to establish its presence across the country, starting at
the level of Nigeria’s geo-political zones, and expanding to states and local
governments as funds and resources permit.
·
The PSC should establish a department
responsible for investigation of public complaints against the police
(particularly cases of corruption, rape, torture and extrajudicial killing) and
discontinue sending such petitions back to the police for investigation.
·
The process of appointing the chairperson and
members of the PSC should be transparent and rigorous in order to ensure that
only qualified persons are appointed to actualise its enormous potentials as a
civilian oversight body on police in Nigeria.
1.3.14 Performance
Appraisal System
The Panel found that the NPF does not take assessment of its
officers’ performance seriously. On
paper, the appraisal system of the NPF looks impressive, as it covers critical
issues such as discipline, knowledge of the job and environment, attitude to
work and performance, relationship with colleagues and superiors and more
importantly, relationship with members of the public. However, the problem is in the application
process, which is not prioritized, rigorously applied or transparent. In the
words of a police officer, “APER (Annual Performance Evaluation Report) is
there for the sake of being there. What the police do is eye service. Nobody
actually looks at the APER.”
1.3.15 Recommendations
·
The IGP should set up a committee to review the
performance appraisal system in the NPF with a view to proposing a new and
functional system, which should then be implemented and stringently
applied. The committee should include
independent experts in in the field of performance management.
·
A task-based system of appraisal which focuses
on performance in given tasks, instead of the current blind filling of forms by
superiors, should be adopted to create objective and transparent criteria for the
assessment of police officers.
·
The APER template should be revised to provide
for police officers being appraised to also score themselves on the issues on
which their supervisors are appraising them.
The expected differential in scores will provide opportunity for the
supervisors and subordinates to discuss the appraisal process and build
confidence in it.
1.3.16 Ban on
Police Unionism
Despite the widespread belief that it is illegal for police
officers to form any kind of trade union or professional association, the Panel
could not find any legislation that supports such a conclusion. Rather, section 40 of the Constitution
guarantees the right to freedom of association and specifically provides that
“Every person shall be entitled to assemble freely and associate with other
persons, and in particular he may form or belong to any political party, trade
union or any other association for the protection of his interests”. The Panel found the tendency of government to
conflate the right to associate with the inevitability of strikes as not only restrictive,
but also likely to guarantee a situation in which grievances are bottled up
until they explode in a manner that is not only detrimental to effective
performance of police duties but also may affect national security.
1.3.17 Recommendation
Having regard to the rights
guaranteed by section 40 of the Constitution, the CSO Panel recommends that
police officers should be encouraged and permitted to form a Police Association
for the purpose of collective bargaining, but be barred from using the strike
option in pressing their concerns or demands for better conditions of service.
1.3.18 Police
Corruption
In spite of the efforts of the current IGP to deal with
corruption in the NPF by dismantling road blocks and dismissing police officers
caught in corrupt acts, the CSO Panel found that corruption is still the number
one impediment to the effective performance of police functions in Nigeria and
a cancer that has spread to every facet of the NPF. The Panel recognised that corruption has
spread throughout Nigerian society but rejected the suggestion that this in any
way excuses or justifies corruption in the NPF.
1.3.19 Recommendations
The leadership of the NPF should:
·
Sustain the abolition of police roadblocks and
checkpoints on the highways.
·
Create a functional and easy-to-use database of
police officers in Nigeria to enhance personal performance monitoring and help
expose erring officers to the public.
·
Resuscitate the police X-Squad in all police
commands and formations across Nigeria, and provide a line budget for their
work.
·
Work with civil society groups to introduce the
use of new media technologies to map police corruption in Nigeria and deploy
more officers from X-Squad to corruption hotspots as identified in the mapping
using geographic positioning system (GPS) technology.
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