It is interesting to observe that the men and officers of all the security agencies have bounced back to their duty posts after the #EndSARS saga. The Anambra State Commissioner of Police, Mr. John Abang, had assured the people of adequate police protection during the Yuletide.
Speaking through the Police Public Relations Officer, [PPRO], Haruna Mohammed, who went on inspection of police beats in all parts of the state to revive the drooping spirit of the men and officers of the state command, assured that the command had complied with the directive of the police boss to go back to their duty posts.
It would be recalled that Police deserted their duty posts as a result of the hijacked #EndSARS protests that led to unfortunate destruction of some police formations, even as some of their colleagues lost their lives. The police in Anambra state should be commended for putting the ugly incidence behind them.
It is pertinent to say that the #EndSARS incidence is never a vote of no confidence on the Nigeria Police. Rather, it should be perceived as a wake-up call to re-evaluate the way they have been carrying out their constitutional duties and fine-tune the police-public interface.
This should be with a view to the observance of the fundamental human rights of the citizenry as well as paying close attention to the nitty-gritty of discharging police duties in accordance with the law.
To say that the #EndSARS protest took great toll on the corporate affairs and issue of governance in the country is merely stating the obvious. Government should see it as a fillip to frontally address the socio-economic and political shortcomings to gear up sustainable growth and development with a view to occupying its rightful place in the comity of nations of the world.
The reassuring aspect of the #EndSARS protest is the preparedness for holistic and fundamental reform of the police. One would hasten to add that the issue of decentralization of governance is integral to effective and efficient security architecture. In other words, the Nigeria Police needs fundamental re-engineering and re-orientation.
There is need for the restoration of the pride and dignity of the body as it was in the early days of the country’s political sovereignty. For instance, the police colleges and police barracks should be reinvented so as to act as inspiration for the youths to make worthwhile career in the force.
The envisaged reformed Nigeria Police should be well-heeled with appropriate accoutrements, functional vehicles for day and night patrol, befitting uniform, state-of-the-art technological gadgets with which to detect crimes of diverse sophistication.
There should equally be realistic emoluments, federal character in recruitment, promotion and advancement to avoid marginalization and foisting of people from a section of the federation. There should be modern equipment that should be deployed in quelling civil upheavals without spilling blood as obtained in civilized polities.
It is time for Nigeria to get it right with security of lives and property. This is time for all Nigerians to cooperate with the law enforcement agencies with credible information going by the fact that effective and efficient security is a joint effort.
The Nigeria Police should also strive to restore the waning confidence of the people and reassure them of the qui-vive to live up to their billings and constitutional mandate. Government should hasten to initiate pragmatic people-oriented policies and projects to reassure the exasperated youths that their future has been factored in the overall socio-economic and political development of our dear country.
POLYCARP ONWUBIKO
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