When 42-year-old Lagos lawyer Sunday Elimihe left his office on the evening of April 7, he never imagined that he would spend two days at the Somolu General Hospital.
Elimihe was beaten up by six allegedly drunk policemen from the Onipanu Police Division for refusing to give them a N1,000 bribe after being accused of using forged tinted glass permit.
A policeman simply identified as Longe stopped the lawyer and asked for his particulars, which he handed over to him. But after scrutinising the documents, Longe claimed the tinted glass permit was forged, but the lawyer said it was not. The officer allegedly demanded N1,000 to let the lawyer go.
Elimihe alleged that the N150,000 he had in his car was stolen.
He said he introduced himself as a lawyer. Longe, who he claimed reeked of alcohol, threatened to shoot him. Longe’s colleague, Sergeant Sarah, took his gun from him.
Not done, Longe banged on the lawyer’s bonnet, and dragged him towards the nearby police station. When they got to the station, Longe, joined by Inspector Ajabi Abdullahi, Emeka and three others in mufti beat him up. Longe told them the lawyer insulted him, but they did not care to listen to Elimihe’s explanation.
“Inspector Ajabi used baton on my head and hand. Blood was oozing out of my nose, eye and mouth. I was shouting for help but no one answered me. I passed out for sometime and when I regained consciousness, I overheard a man telling them to leave me alone or I will die in their custody,” he said.
It took the intervention of the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) and Commissioner of Police for Elimihe to be taken to a hospital for treatment.
Residents live in fear
Residents of Church Street, Ijora Badia live in fear of an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Ibrahim Odufarasin aka Jagaban of Badia.
He is accused of maintaining an army of thugs with whom he attacks anyone who dares to oppose his brutish acts.
In a petition addressed to the Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase, dated April 8, the community outlined the many crimes committed by the ASP, listing his victims.
On March 30, the officer returned home and realised a naming ceremony was going on without his knowledge.
“Under the excuse that there was a scuffle between persons, who had since been separated, he brought out a dagger to stab anyone who was still around. In the process, he stabbed Ade Ogunbajo. Whilst some residents were trying to stop him from killing someone, he stabbed Muritala Rasak. Some residents and these men finally succeeded in persuading him to enter his house.
“He suddenly emerged from his house in Rambo style with two guns-one local gun and another AK47 rifle, which he hung on his neck and started shooting sporadically with the local gun.,” the community said.
Following the intervention of the DPO, Kayode Ayeni and other officers, the guns were recovered from Odufarasin. He was later arrested and taken away. But Odufarasin was said to have returned on April 6. Accompanied by persons suspected to be thugs armed with weapons, he allegedly asked the elders to start relocating because he was back.
Soldiers on rampage
On December 21, a soldier simply identified as Danbaba alias Sergeant Kurfo allegedly murdered a cobbler, Kabiru Rabe inside Giwa Barracks, Ikoyi, because the deceased did not respond when the soldier called him.
Rabe was alegedly beaten to death with a stick. Danbaba and his cohorts were said to have secretly taken him to a grave yard in Agege, where he was buried, without the knowledge of his wife and family members.
According to the deceased’s brother, Kabiru Lawal, Rabe had an earpiece on and did not hear when the soldier (who normally came to their shops at Falomo roundabout and forced them into the barrack to clean gutters) called.
DPO beats traffic warden
A DPO in charge of Ikenne in Ogun State, Patrick Onwu, on April 11, allegedly beat up a female traffic warden for stopping his vehicle at an intersetion.
The DPO, who was said to be in plain clothes, drove into a nearby petrol station, changed into his uniform, and descended on the woman, Inspector Anifat Bello, who had received awards for her dedication to duty.
The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Solomon Arase, was said to have ordered Onwu’s demotion and his transfer. Onwu was demoted to the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police from Superintendent of Police.
Experts seek solution
Analysts have attributed the abuses to faulty recruitment processes, poor training, mental imbalance, corruption and a fallout of long years of military rule.
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Sylva Ogwemoh, said the recruitment process should be streamlined to ensure only the best hands and mentally-stable persons are employed as security agents. Minimum educational qualification, he said, should be the National Diploma.
“We had cases in the past where senior lawyers and indeed senior citizens of this country have been brutalised, abused and harassed by policemen and other military personnel for no just cause.
“The brutality in most cases comes in two mutually exclusive areas; the police use of excessive physical force and the police use of all other non-physical forces, such as abuse of authority and verbal abuse.
“Citizens who have been victims of these brutalities have in some cases approached the Courts for a remedy and the Courts have indeed come to their aid by way of award of punitive damages. In spite of the interventions by the Courts, we still hear of cases of police and military brutality in our current democratic setting.
“Psychological exams taking before admitting to police college is important. The length of training at the police college should also be looked into by the authorities and those training the officer cadet should themselves be well trained.
“Emphasis should also be placed on increasing the number of in-service training programmes on the use of force, regular reviews of use of force, a clear written policy on the use of lethal and less lethal weapons, and the reporting requirement for the use of force.
“There should be institutional training for the police force specifically targeted at preventing improper conduct and where there are breaches the disciplinary machinery must be immediately invoked. If we consciously follow these steps, cases of police brutality will be greatly reduced to the barest minimum in the near future,” he said.
Former Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Ikeja Branch chairman, Monday Ubani, said the brutality meted to citizens by, especially, the police showed how poorly undeveloped the country is, emphasising the need for respect of peoples’ rights.
“The truth of the matter is that we have issues with the Nigerian Police Force, they range from police brutality, obtaining confessional statements through crude method, intimidation, extortion, lack of respect to human dignity and persons to outright impunity in the discharge of their statutory duties.
“The failure of the Nigerian Police in all these areas earlier on enumerated is systemic. Our police personnel perform excellently well while on foreign assignments but their performance back home most times is below any known standard lending credence that our environment is implicated in their poor performance.”
To constitutional lawyer, Dr. Fred Agbaje, damages and all financial costs should be borne by the abuser of any individual, who should either be dismissed or suspended, depending on the gravity.
He also argued that a two-week mandatory course on sociology and imperative of human rights should be attended at designated universities and become a criteria for every police man or woman to be promoted to the next rank.
“Teach the rule of law and human rights at Police Colleges. Aside every police man or woman irrespective of his\her rank must attend every two weeks of the sociology and imperative of human rights program at designated universities and the outcome of such intellectual exercise be the basic minimum for promotion to the next rank.
“Furthermore, any breach of this right and monetary compensation {which must be heavy}, must be paid from the salary\pension, and the defence of such cases should be borne by the itinerant and lawless officer including but not limited to an outright dismissal from the force. The law is no respecter of persons afterall, as stated by the late Afro beat, Fela Anikulapo, ‘Uniform na cloth na Tailor dey sow am’.
“Where the damages to be awarded by the Court cannot be met by the affected officer’s terminal benefits, the maginal difference should be paid by the Police Service Commission for their recruitment of bad element into the Police Force. Domesticate and democratise the Force by removing the phrase “Force”. It should be Nigeria Police Service,” he said.
Police must build trust
Lagos lawyer Emeka Nwadioke said: “It must be said that these acts of arbitrariness run through the entire gamut of security apparatus including the military services. At the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Lagos Branch we are currently handling a similar case of wanton and grievous assault on our lawyer-member who was assaulted inside the courtroom by a Police Prosecutor. Not even the intervention of the presiding Magistrate could assuage the rampaging prosecutor. We are committed to petition the Lagos State Commissioner of Police with a view to bringing the culprit to justice.
“The implication of this high level of rascality is that the IGP’s message of enthroning human rights is not sinking in as fast as it should. It, therefore, behoves on the police authorities to embark on a more aggressive enlightenment campaign on the need for the rank and file to respect human rights. Redeployment of police officers who are facing serious complaints as was the case recently in Delta State is a mere slap on the wrist; it is unacceptable. The police leadership must not give the impression that it lacks the political will to discipline its members by mere administrative gymnastics.”
Nwadioke said minimum entry for the police should be a university degree, HND or Ordinary National Diploma.
Member, Ogun State Judiciary Commission, Abayomi Omoyinmi, said: “Stiffer penalties and punishment be melted on the individual found culpable so as to deter other from such lunatic behaviour.
“Apart from such person or persons facing disciplinary charges within their establishment in the force, they should also be charged to court for the crime they have committed under the criminal law. The victim should bring up a civil suit against the culprit where it is possible and can be afforded. These overwhelming court actions and punishments that may arise as consequences may prevent the abuse,” he said.
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