The
Nigerian police has responded to a report by the Nigerian Bureau of
Statistics(NBS) alleging that officers of the police and Judges were the
most corrupt in the country.
In a statement made available to PoliticsNGR, signed by CSP Jimoh Moshood, the police said;
The
attention of the Nigeria Police Force has been drawn to the National
Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
(UNODC) reports published on the 16th August 2017 captioned “Police
officers, judges most corrupt in Nigeria – NBS (Bribery as experienced
by the population)”. The report was claimed to have been based on a
survey conducted in April and May 2016 across the Thirty Six (36) States
of the Federation and the FCT.
2. The deliberately ill-timed
release of the findings from a survey carried out two years ago this
week is coming at a time when the Nigeria Police Force has fully keyed
into the change mantra of the Federal Government of Nigeria “Change
Begins with Me” and total war against corruption. The Force has also
established and repositioned the mechanisms of the Force responsible for
fighting corruption, bribery and other corrupt tendencies within and
outside the Force.
3. The Nigeria Police Force after a careful
study of the report, wishes to state categorically that the report is
entirely misleading, a clear misrepresentation of facts, essentially
based on hearsays which made it unempirical, and the survey instrument
absolutely inadequate and therefore a plain distortion of the improved
situation in the Force as a result of the renewed commitment and
determination to fight corruption, bribery and corrupt tendencies in the
ranks of the personnel of the Force.
4. For the avoidance of
doubt, since the inception of the present administration of the Nigeria
Police Force in July 2016, after the reported survey has been conducted
and concluded, the Inspector General of Police has introduced and
implemented diverse internal reforms aimed at bringing corruption to
zero level in the Force as follows:
i. To ensure that Police
Officers operate within the principle of the rule of law and respect the
rights of Nigerians while performing their constitutional duties of
protecting lives and property and to abhor corruption, the Police
formulated a new set of directive principles titled “Our Creed” to
reposition the minds and hearts of every Police officer and launched
with the following doctrines:
(a). We shall police the country based on international core values of policing with integrity
(b). We shall ensure that the rule of law prevails in our actions and activities
(c). We shall respect diversity, display courage, show compassion and demonstrate professionalism
(d). We shall operate within the principles of Democratic policing
(e). We shall shun corruption
(f) We shall make Nigeria safer and secured
II.
Similarly, to further make police officers imbibe a culture where the
rule of law forms the bedrock of our actions and activities, and give
the fight against corruption the bite and new impetus, this
administration has commenced the training of officers on the
Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA). The Act is considered an
important legislation because of its innovative provisions, and every
Police Officer has been enjoined to follow strictly the provisions of
the Act. This will to a very large extent has been reduced and
eliminated, instances of unlawful arrests, illegal detentions and
inhumane treatments in the police stations across the country that can
tempt officers to corruption tendencies.
III. The X-Squad Unit of
the Force responsible for the arrest, detention, investigation, and
prosecution of any officer found wanting and culpable of corruption,
bribery or corrupt tendencies has been reinvigorated, equipped and its
personnel retrained with detachments in all the Thirty-Six (36) States
of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory Abuja to deal
decisively with corruption allegations made against police officers to
eliminate corruption in the Force.
IV. The Re-launch of Complaint
Response Unit (CRU) to a more broadened Public Complaints Rapid
Response Unit (PCRRU) was carried out by the current Police Management
Team to facilitate dynamism and to promptly address complaints against
officers of the Force bothering on corruption. This unit is responsible
for receiving and attending to reports of corruption from members of the
public against Police officers, it was relaunched by the Inspector
General of Police in Abuja in late 2016 and subsequently launched
simultaneously by Commissioners of Police in all the Commands of the
Thirty Six (36) States of the Federation and the FCT last year.
V.
Formation and take- off of Eminent Persons Forum across the Thirty Six
(36) States of the Federation and the FCT to create public enlightenment
campaign against corruption within the Force and inform the Public of
the free and unhindered access to the Nigeria Police Force to report
complaints of corruption against Police Officers.
5. The Nigeria
Police Force has been working with critical stakeholders in the Criminal
Justice System in the country’ and other local and International
Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) including International Human
Rights Organizations to train and re-train Police Personnel to conform
to international best practices to shun and detest corruption, bribery
and corruption tendencies. This has engendered a change of attitudes and
good disposition in the conduct of Police Personnel throughout the
country towards abstaining from corruption.
6. However, it must
be pointed out that the Nigeria Police Force sees the report as a clear
demonstration of mischief and calculated attempt to promote a campaign
of calumny against Police Officers. Nowhere in the report were
references made to either the improved transparency in the Nigeria
Police Force or the sustained daily sacrifice being made by gallant
officers and men of the force in confronting criminalities in the
society.
7. The Inspector General of Police, IGP Ibrahim K.
Idris, NPM, mni wishes to reassure Nigerians and the International
Community that the Nigeria Police Force will continue to fight,
discourage and shun corruption, bribery and corrupt tendencies within
and outside the Force, and continue to discharge its statutory
responsibilities according to the rule of law despite the obvious
distractions from the report.
8. The renewed determination of the
Force to adhere to International Police Reforms and conform to standard
principles, building trust and confidence in the citizenry and above
all comply and support the Federal Government War Against Corruption
remained unequivocal and unwavering.
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