Community Policing In Nigeria A Scam – Says OAU Don

A professor from the Department of History at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Ile-Ife, Osun State, Kemi Rotimi, has characterized community policing in Nigeria as a fraudulent concept.

The academic asserted that discussions surrounding community policing in Nigeria tend to intensify whenever financial support is provided by donor agencies committed to ensuring the safety of citizens and their property.

Naija News reports that Rotimi made these remarks during an appearance on Channels Television’s program Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, emphasizing a lack of genuine discourse regarding community policing in the nation.

“When Nigeria Force Headquarters chiefs talk about community policing, if I call it a scam, I won’t be too wrong.

“For so many years, we have been mouthing and touting community policing; the noise will be deafening whenever there is donor agency money.

“The moment the donor agency money dries up, the noise will go down. In the last two years, have you noticed that we have not heard much about community policing?

“The Nigeria Police Force, as constituted, cannot be community policing. Why? The rapid turnover of staff—the staff deployment nature of the Nigeria Police Force—does not amount to community policing.

“Community policing, as a matter of fact, is not a programme; it is a philosophy that should undergird and be instilled into policing while training personnel,” Rotimi stated.

The professor indicated that he has conducted research on the history of policing in Nigeria. He remarked that what has been referred to as community policing is fundamentally misleading, stating, “The individual who promoted community policing, former Inspector General of Police Tafa Balogun, became aware of the concept while in America, presented it to President Olusegun Obasanjo, who embraced it; however, it was a poorly conceived and inadequately understood initiative.”

The scholar further asserted that the police force has never received adequate funding since the pre-colonial era. He noted that the early police were composed of former slaves during colonial times, and the legacy of treating police officers as if they were slaves continues to persist. He emphasized that the situation deteriorated further during the civil war and subsequent military regimes.

Additionally, the academic claimed that members of the elite have been known to misappropriate portions of the limited funds allocated to the police.

He concluded that for policing to be truly effective, it is essential to ensure proper funding, along with the implementation of an appropriate philosophy and motivation for the members of the police force.