Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
Low public awareness about the provisions of the new Nigeria Police Act 2020, has been blamed for the persistent rights abuse and excesses of police personnel in the South-East geopolitical zone.
This was the consensus of participants at a two-day “Media Townhall Awareness on Human Rights, the Police Act, and Regulations,” organised in Enugu by the Rule of Law and Empowerment Initiative also known as Partners West Africa Nigeria (PWAN), for media practitioners in the zone.
Participants noted with concern, the high level of ignorance of the provisions of the new Act among members of the public as well as police personnel themselves, hence the perpetuation of rights abuse by some police personnel.
This is as media practitioners in the zone, have vowed to mount aggressive sensitisation of the public on their rights and the roles of the police as contained in the Act.
Participants comprising media practitioners from all five states in the South-East, decried the multiple checkpoints and continued extortion of motorists plying various routes in the zone.
They also called for immediate stoppage of bail with money as demanded in most police stations which they said, was a contradiction of the new Police Act.
Participants equally called for investigation and immediate stoppage of allegations, if true, that police charge money before petitions to the Inspector General of Police (IGP), and other high ranking officers could be submitted and acknowledged.
They urged the police to be more friendly and not combative in their relationship with the media, and to be pro-actively forthcoming with information or clarification on issues instead of leaving them at the realm of speculation.
The participants also called for investigation and stoppage of allegations that Commissioners of Police and other Senior Officers pay or lobby for juicy posting.
In a presentation, the Executive Director, Rule of Law and Accountability Centre (RULAAC), Mr Okechukwu Nwanguma, said that the new Police Act was drafted to rectify the shortcomings of the old Act, and urged the media to help in sensitising the public about the immense benefits of the new Act.
“We are tired of being policed wrongly,” he said, while calling on the police to respect the rights of citizens as required by the new Act.
On some of the provisions of the new Police Act, he said it was wrong for police to arrest another person in lieu of a suspect, adding that police personnel are also prohibited from taking alcoholic liquor.
Earlier in her opening remarks, the Executive Director, PWAN , Ms Kemi Okenyodo, represented by Nkem Okereke, regretted that many citizens were unaware of their rights under the new police Act, and as a result, may lack the confidence to hold the police accountable for misconduct or abuses of power.
She said that Nigeria had faced systemic issues in its policing, characterised by allegations of corruption, misuse of power, and a significant disconnect between police operations and community expectations.
According to her, PWAN in collaboration with its foreign partners, organised the media townhall across all six geopolitical zones, as part of moves to stop abuse of human rights by the police.
“The project seeks to address critical gaps in the understanding and application of the Police Act 2020 and the accompanying regulations within the Nigerian Police Force (NPF),” she said.
“Through the townhall meeting, we aim to promote awareness of citizens’ rights under the Police Act 2020, allowing us to address the gap in public knowledge regarding human rights and the provisions of the Police Act 2020.”
Other resource persons made presentations at the event which also featured panel discussion.
