Nigeria Police Research Articles

Policing a Multicultural Society: A Case for State, Local & Community Policing in Nigeria

Policing a Multicultural Society: A Case for State, Local & Community Policing in Nigeria

Assessment of the Perception of Security Men on Criminal Profiling as a Tool for Crime Control in Kaduna State, Nigeria

The study assessed the perception of security men on criminal profiling as a tool for crime control in Kaduna State, Nigeria. The study employed survey design with a convenient sampling technique. Two hundred and eleven (211) male and female security men participated in the study from the Nigeria Police Force, Kaduna State Command and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps Kaduna State Command. Their age range was from 18 – 48 years and above. Hypothesis one results revealed a statistically significant X 2 (1) = 4.830, P < 0.05 positive perception of the officers’ knowledge of criminal profiling and effective crime control in Kaduna State. In other words, the hypothesis was confirmed in this study. Hypothesis two revealed a statistically significant r (209) = -0.201, P<0.05 negative relationship between criminal profiling and crime control among officers of NPF and NSCDC. In other words, the hypothesis was confirmed in this study. Hypothesis three result revealed a statistically significant, t (209) = -4.244, P< 0.05 difference between male and female security men perception of criminal profiling in Kaduna State. In other words, the stated hypothesis was confirmed in this study. It is therefore concluded and recommended that there is a perception of the security men on criminal profiling towards effective crime control in Kaduna and there should be an increased application of criminal profiling by law enforcement as well as enlightenment to ensure effective crime control in the society.

IN SEARCH FOR A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO THE REFORMATION OF POLICING AND SECURITY ARCHITECTURE IN NIGERIA

The pervasive internal insecurity in Nigeria underscores the need to question the effectiveness of the current policing and security system. With increasing prevalence and incidence of insecurity in the country, the Nigeria Police has failed in its major assignment of internal security. Against this backdrop, this study focuses on the search for holistic approach to the reformation of Nigeria Police and Security Architecture in the country. In-depth interviews were conducted with forty-five (45) participants from the NPF. From the findings, major challenges affecting policing and the security architecture in the country include a lack of effective accountability and monitoring the mechanism in the police force, gross misconduct, and mismanagement of funds and resources in the police force. Critical recommendations to enhance the reformation process include improved accountability and monitoring mechanism in the police force, adoption of an effective policing model that addresses crime and insecurity and provision of modern equipment, research, science and technology to enable police and security agencies meet the crime and insecurity challenges. The situation calls for a fundamental reformation of the NPF targeted at vision actualization and achievement of its mission and goals of improved internal security. Key Words: Accountability, Monitoring, Policing System, Reformation, Nigeria, and Security Architecture.

UNDERSTANDING THE PRINCIPLES GUIDING THE COMMUNITY POLICING PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE NIGERIA POLICE AND VIGILANTE GROUPS IN IKORODU, LAGOS.

Community policing is presently considered by most Police organizations and scholars as the latest model of Policing. Despite this wide spread acceptance, there is still no clear agreement on what Community policing actually entails. The only area of agreement is the fact that community policing entails a partnership between the Police and organized groups of members of the community that the Police is serving. Previous researches had focused on the effectiveness of this partnership but had not looked in detail into the principles guiding this community policing partnership. Using an unstructured face-toface interview, questions was posed to members of the Nigeria Police and Onyabo Vigilante group in Ikorodu. The data gathered reveals that the community policing partnership between the Nigeria Police and Onyabo Vigilante Group Ikorodu were guided by the following principles of partnership, defines roles and functions, community involvement in crime prevention, clear communication between both partners and respect for human rights and rules of engagement. These principles help not only to better understand the nature and scope of community policing but it also helps fashion out a community policing policy direction for Police organizations, scholars and government policy makers. KEY WORDS: Community. Community Policing. Vigilante group. Partnership.

Application of Participatory GIS in Crime Mapping of Ibadan North, Nigeria

This paper demonstrates the application of Participatory Geographic Information System (PGIS) as a tool to present people’s local spatial knowledge of crime in the form of 2-dimensional maps. This study adopted a survey research design employing both primary and secondary data sources. Primary data were collected through the administration of 96 copies of questionnaires, and a Web-based PGIS map served as a data collection instrument to collect spatial information on crime occurrences in the study area. Secondary data were sourced from journals, reports and the Nigerian Police Force. Results show that Mokola is a poor residential neighborhood occupied mainly by self-employed and low-income business merchants. It also reveals that Mokola experiences 689 percent more crime than would be expected, given the distribution of crime in the study area. Also, crime hotspots such as Roundabout junction, Dandaru hill, Darlington street were identified by participants aiding knowledge of the crime pattern in the study area. This study recommends natural surveillance as a concept of Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) to keep potential offenders under easy observation. In conclusion, this study offers a vital link between the police and the general populace, one that has been absent in times past.

We are watching them as they post: a mirror into the Nigerian Police Force use of social media and challenges affecting its adoption in policing

ABSTRACT Most available studies on the police use of social media and challenges focus on developed countries. This research aims to better understand how the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) use social media and the challenges to the adoption of social media for policing in Nigeria. Our research answers the following questions: how does the NPF use social media? And what challenges hinder the adoption of social media for policing? We relied on in-depth interviews of forty-five police officers and findings show that NPF uses social media for surveillance and intelligence gathering, community engagement, and image making, and the force is faced with financial constraints, untrained personnel, and preponderance of online fake information, privacy issue and leaking of ongoing investigation as challenges. We argue that for the NPF to effectively use social media there is urgent need to address the challenges raised by the officers.

Beyond decentralising the Nigerian Police: how Lagos state circumvented debates on police reforms

ABSTRACT Opinions are divided on the root causes of the ineptitude of the Nigerian Police Force which has been faced with both domestic and international backlashes. While certain scholars argue that the force is victim to historical subjugation, others raise questions about its centralised structure and the impact of political interference on its performance. This research examines subnational variations and differential outcomes, particularly exploring how Lagos pragmatically bypassed the lingering debates to implement a successful police intervention. Through the use of qualitative secondary data from media reports, extant academic papers and reports from government watchdogs, it however discovers that though commendable, the Lagos model can hardly be replicated in other states in Nigeria based on Lagos’ peculiar economic and political characteristics.

Ability-Enhancing Practices and Organisational Performance: Does Justice Perception Moderate the Relationship in The Context of Police Force in Nigeria?

The knowledge, skills, and abilities constituting employee characteristics are often described as the capacity needed by a firm to attain competitive advantage which in turn occasions performance outcomes at various firm’s levels. While evidence of significant and insignificant relationships between ability-enhancing practices and performance outcomes at firm’s levels has been registered across organisational contexts in human resource management literature, such evidence remains limited and anecdotal in the context of criminal justice system in Nigeria. Using a survey data from 321 police officers, this study investigated the interactional effect of justice perception on the relationship between ability-enhancing practices and performance of police force in Nigeria. The study adopted both descriptive and explanatory designs, and the study instruments were adapted. The validity and reliability of the study instruments were determined via Principal Component Analysis, and thereafter data collected were analysed employing both descriptive and inferential statistical methods with the aid of analytical tool of Statistical Package for Social Sciences. The moderating effect of justice perception was established using PROCESS macro and the results were interpreted using Baron and Kenny’s (1986) approach for determining mediation effect. The results of the analysis revealed that the performance of police force in Nigeria was predicted by composite construct of ability enhancing practices, and the relationship was completely moderated by justice perception. The results also revealed significant effects of rigorous recruitment and selection, and coaching on performance of police force, however, insignificant effects of job rotation and mentoring practices were found with performance of police force in Nigeria. The study contributes to the body of empirical knowledge that individual’s perception of fairness of the implemented organisational systems to enhance employee knowledge, skills, and abilities is vital to the attainment of favourable performance outcomes. The institution of Criminal Justice System can leverage on the findings of this study to improve human capital development so as to attain desired performance outcomes.

Partnership between the Police and Private Security Services on Crime Prevention and Control in Nigeria: An Empirical Analysis

This study investigated the partnership between the police and private security services on crime prevention and control in Nigeria. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design of an ex-post facto type. Three research questions were raised. Data were collected using a self-developed questionnaire tagged “crime control by police and private security services in Nigeria”. Research questionnaires were administered to three hundred (300) participants randomly selected among the police, PSC, and the public in Lagos State, in Nigeria. Data were analyzed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient and t-test statistical methods. The findings of this study revealed a satisfactory perception of the public on the police and private security services partnership on crime prevention and control. Also, a significant relationship was found between the police and private security services on crime prevention and control in Nigeria (r = .657; p >.05); while there is no significant difference in the perception of the Nigeria Police and private security services on crime prevention and control. It is therefore recommended that instead of having just a template theory, a structured, coordinated, operational and partnership mechanisms for an effective collaboration with regards to civility, transparency and cordial relativity between security stakeholders be established with the aim of providing the synergy required for such partnership.

Community participation in crime prevention and control in rural Nigeria

The rural areas in Nigeria have become notorious with all kinds of crime. Inadequate amenities such as good roads and communication infrastructure in rural areas in Nigeria have made it difficult for the Nigeria Police to effectively detect and prevent crimes in rural Nigeria. It is consequent on these escalations of criminal activities that rural communities in Nigeria have evolved community policing to protect their neighbourhoods.This article presents the benefits of using qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection to unravel the potentials inherent in informal crime prevention and control in rural localities in Nigeria. The social capital theory was used to bring out the benefits of community participation in crime control in rural Nigeria.Findings from the study indicated high theft cases as common crime in rural Nigeria. Youths were observed to constitute greater percentage of suspects at police stations for crime. Unemployment and poverty among the rural populace especially youths were responsible for these criminalities. The absence of social infrastructure, inadequate police presence and government support to unemployed youths made the crime situations worse in rural areas. There was low level of community interactions with the police in crime prevention and control in rural Nigeria.The study recommended increased police-public partnership in crime prevention and control in rural Nigeria.

Parametric Model for Accident Prediction Along Ado Ekiti – Ikole Ekiti Road, Ekiti State, Nigeria

Parametric Model for Accident Prediction Along Ado Ekiti – Ikole Ekiti Road, Ekiti State, Nigeria

A Parametric Model for Accident Prediction Along Ado Ekiti – Ikole Ekiti Road, Ekiti State, Nigeria

A Parametric Model for Accident Prediction Along Ado Ekiti – Ikole Ekiti Road, Ekiti State, Nigeria

A question of addressing the real issues of the Nigerian Police operatives’ ineffectiveness for improved petormance

The Nigerian Police ineffectiveness in internal security services is a national challenge. The police have been labelled unfriendly and discredited by many due to their personal experiences and media reports. Research findings indicate that with the police, Nigerians are among the worst Police victims of human rights violations in Africa, due to corruption, unlawful and prolonged detention without trials and various unprofessional conduct. This investigation explores the issues of the Nigerian Police road traffic operatives along a heavy traffic highway in North Central Nigeria that qualify their unprofessional attitudes and behaviors, with possible insights to advance knowledge for policies towards improving service delivery. We collected data from police officers of two police formations in the research area, by quantitative survey. Also from the same two locations and another location, we collected qualitative data by applying in-depth analyses of opinion leaders. We applied Herzberg’s two factor theory and observed that lack of both motivators and hygiene factors seem to be impacting the operatives negatively hence they are not motivated to operate effectively. Data suggest that the Police immediate constraints are mainly hygiene factors (monetary rewards, welfare, tools, among others) which build up frustration and predispose them to oppression and extortion of road users, reflecting the overarching corrupt environment. The results support some earlier findings that both motivators and hygiene factors, not mainly motivators, drive employee motivation and performance. Policy implications include enhanced statutory spending and overhaul of the agency structure for improved employee performance.

English

Jungle justice has added another dimension to the neigbourhood insecurity challenge in Lagos metropolis. The reoccurring lynching of suspect(s) in a crime scene, in Lagos metropolis and Nigeria, as well as, the dearth of empirical studies on this heinous crime in Nigeria motivated this study. Thus, this study anchored on Social Disorganisation Theory (SDT) of the Chicago School of Criminology, which identified neighborhood crime and delinquency, emphasizing spatial patterns of behaviours. In-depth interview was employed to uncover the factors, patterns of occurrence, and the security implication of Jungle justice in Lagos metropolis. Purposive sampling technique was utilised to get a sample size of thirty respondents for this study. Content analysis was used to analyze the transcribed data and results showed that jungle justice happens as a result of incessant neighbourhood crimes and insecurities with lack of public and institutional trust in the Nigeria Police Force in the prosecution of a crime suspect. To avert jungle justice in Lagos metropolis, there must be a concerted effort by the public and the Nigeria Police Force to preempt the future occurrence of such crime. Key words: Jungle justice, crime, insecurity, Lagos.

Police-citizen interactions in Nigeria: the ‘ordinary’ aspects

ABSTRACT Certain types of police actions are beginning to represent ‘the ordinary’ – many of which seem to be simply too commonplace to capture the attention of researchers. Based on an ethnographic experiment conducted over the course of 10 months in Nigeria, this article contributes to existing literature by redirecting attention to what is termed here as ‘the ordinary’ aspects of law enforcement. These ordinaries include verbal exchanges, the use of police slang and typification, and how police officers develop shorthand characterisations when they encounter the ‘bastards’ and the ‘witches’. Further included are other micro-elements such as spitting patterns and mockeries, which seem to be central to the negative interactions and confrontations that dominate everyday policing in Nigeria, and the role played by boredom, humour, and humiliation. Previous studies have rarely examined these aspects and perceive them as insignificant. However, this article demonstrates the significance of these critical ordinaries and elucidates how they damage the legitimacy of the police organisation in Nigeria. As a contribution, this article argues that without sufficient attention to ‘the ordinary’ aspects of law enforcement, the crises of police brutality and negative interactions may not be amended.

Building Security through Insecurity: The Nigerian Military and Counter-Violence Campaigns in the Fourth Republic

Since independence on October 1, 1960, Nigeria has been a victim, at one time or the other, of intra-ethnic, inter-ethnic, religious, and communal conflicts which have undermined the human security of her citizens. Nigeria’s corporate existence had also been threatened by 3 years (1967–1970) civil war which impacted negatively on the well-being of its people. In addition, the inability of the Nigerian Police to cope with the magnitude of the surge of violence in recent years has brought about the idea of involving the military, a core component of traditional security apparatus to deal with internal insecurity. This article is anchored on human security paradigm with reliance on secondary data to analyze the operations of the Nigerian Military in counterviolence campaigns between 1999 and 2017. This article points out that the involvement of the military in internal security has worsened the problem of insecurity due to the military’s unprofessional approach and, at times, deliberate targeting the civilian populace which it is supposed to protect. It, therefore, recommends among others, the need for the Federal Government of Nigeria to urgently review the role of the armed forces in addressing internal security situations in a way that will bring about respect for the rule of engagement in internal security operations and adherence to global best practices.

Tackling Cybercrimes in the 5G Era

The study examined the readiness and digital skills of the Nigerian Police in tackling cybercrimes in the 5G era. Consequently, four specific research objectives were identified, and three hypotheses were tested in the study. The descriptive correlational research design was adopted for the study and the population comprised all police officers from the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) and above in the Criminal Investigation Department in Edo State (including the Anti-Fraud Unit). The sample for the study was 35 police officers in the state. The instruments for data gathering was self-designed questionnaire, and the data collected were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. From the data analyzed, it was gathered that significant relationship existed among the readiness, digital skills of the Nigerian Police, and the tackling of cybercrimes in 5G era. The study concluded that the deployment of 5G technology will bring with it a new level of cyber threat, which will truly test the resolve of cyber security in and outside the country.

Police violence targeting LGBTIQ+ people in Nigeria: Advancing solutions for a 21st century challenge

The Government of Nigeria passed the Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act (SSMPA) in 2014, emboldening the human rights violations of LGBT Nigerians by state and nonstate actors. Nigerian police enforce morality laws that criminalize same-sex relations, but their role as perpetrators of violence has not been well studied. Using six-year (2014 to 2019) administrative data, this article investigates the severity, prevalence, and typology of police violence and abuse of LGBT Nigerians. Since SSMPA, violence against LGBT Nigerians has risen by 214 percent. Survivors frequently report arbitrary arrest and unlawful detention, invasion of privacy, physical assault and battery, and blackmail/extortion. This study is the first to present serial, cross-sectional findings of LGBT Nigerians’ experience with the police. Available administrative reports and data were synthesized to produce a general picture of the situation on the ground. Findings point to actionable social and policy recommendations that can be taken to promote police accountability and improve police-LGBT community relations.

Voices from ‘Igbo Bunks’: A qualitative study of the complicity of law-enforcement agents in marijuana use in a Nigerian community

There exists observable complicity by law enforcement agents in illicit drug networks for financial gain and yet the problem remains under-researched. Thus, this study explored the connection between cannabis use/users and the connivance of narcotic agents in Afikpo North LGA of Ebonyi State, Nigeria. Purposive and snowballing sampling techniques were employed in selecting a sample of 21, comprising 18 regular ‘Igbo Bunks’ (specially designed marijuana-smoking joints) patronisers and three dealers (Bunk owners/managers). Qualitative thematic method was adopted in analysing the data generated from in-depth oral interviews. Findings revealed that three popular Bunks operate unhidden and were well-known to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and Nigeria Police Force (NPF), but little or no action has been taken to close them down. Although the outcome of the connivance has led to an increase in the price of cannabis due to illegal monetary compensation given to law enforcers to secure their approval, recurring use has also been recorded due to the ostensible comfort and protection these joints offer to customers. Organised marijuana smoking is a fast growing but underexplored ‘law-enforcement problem’ to watch and therefore further empirical studies on the phenomenon is suggested to further direct policy and action. There is urgent need for community responses and partnership with law enforcement agents. Since the most visible part of drug issue takes place in our neighbourhoods, this security synergy is necessary and timely for effective prevention and control of the phenomenon.

English

Studies and institutional reports have argued that youth violence is a precursor to national insecurity in Nigeria. Contrary to youth as an agent of transformation and national development, their recurrence in violent conflicts has continued to undermine the national security of the country. Such security backlash is further conflated by the protracted Boko Haram insurgency which has ruptured the nation building, but also tugs on the sovereignty of the Nigerian state. While these phenomena have increasing implication for the country stability; youth violence across various communities in Lagos State, a megacity; the economic nerve centre of the country has further put Nigeria’s economic prosperity and security architecture in dire strait. This security deficit is the prevalence of anomie and lawlessness in Ikorodu Local Government area of Lagos State, instigated by the crisis of urbanisation, land grabbing, demographic pressure and cultism. This study examines youth violence and the failure of the Nigerian state, with focus on Onyabo Vigilante Groups (OVG), as a crucial actor in curtailing violence in Ikorodu Local Government of Lagos State. Using a qualitative method as a frame of analysis, the study argues that the lack of state capacity, resulting in unemployment, abject poverty and poor socio-condition is responsible for the widespread incidences of youth violence instigated by land grabbing and cultism in Ikorodu Local Government. The study concludes on the imperative of overhauling the security architecture of the state, to recognise vigilante groups legally and institutionally, as a complementary security outfit to the Nigerian police. More importantly, questions of poverty, unemployment and social dislocation should be put on the front burner of government developmental agenda to forestall hopelessness and frustration which are frequent condition breeding violence in Nigeria.             Key words: State, vigilante, youth violence, Onyabo, Ikorodu.