Photo courtesy of BBC News
A March 5th article on BBC News discusses new reports which reveal the shocking offenses committed by the Nigerian police force and have brought into question the effectiveness of the police. Although corruption and horrid offenses are nothing new with Nigeria's police, Nigerian citizens are appalled by their apparent lack of moral and reason. The police force itself is divided on the issue. While national police chief Ibrahim Lame is the one of the government officials responsible for bringing the police's transgressions to light and has committed himself to improve Nigeria's police force, Inspector General of Police Ogbonna Onovo defended them by talking about how many of the criminals the police hunt are often more equipped than the police are. He also said the police were "operating under unbearable conditions", most probably referring to all the violence from militants and ethnic riots the police has to deal with. However, this does not justify actions such as the shooting of innocent people or not even showing up at a crime scene last week where robbers forcefully ordered innocent civilians on a bus be killed. Despite all these appalling events, the fact that the government has finally acknowledged the problems with the police is a definite step in the right direction.
This BBC article shows us both a negative and positive aspect in the legitimacy of Nigeria's government. While the actions of the police are unquestionably completely unacceptable, the government's decision to actually take action demonstrates the government's desire to improve their citizens' view, especially due to the fact that police officials are the ones orchestrating this move. The fact that the Senate has moved to push an investigation of the bus incident last week is once again another positive move for Nigeria's legitimacy. The article also brings to light possible reasons as to why the police force behaves in a way so contrary to their job- poverty and nationwide tensions. These two topics have come up week after week in Nigerian news and are two of the main factors that hinder the country's development. In addition, the article talks about how the culture of violence in the hands of Nigeria's police force is a deep and powerful culture that will take time to reverse. As BBC reporter Caroline Duffield said, "Nigerians are accustomed to seeing bodies pile up [by police]." As the new government under the hands of Goodluck Jonathan attempts to fight back one of the biggest evils in Nigerian society, corruption, it is up to the Nigerian citizens to decide whether they wish to accept this change after years of seeing brutality as a norm by the police.
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