The killing of three male customers at a hotel in the Ketu area of Lagos by a drunken policeman identified as Sergeant Stephen James has once again drawn attention to the excesses of some policemen in the country.
Sergeant James was reported to have shot twin brothers, Taiwo and Kehinde Oyesunle, and their friend identified as Jeje, to death, after demanding free drinks from them. According to an eyewitness, the policeman had left his duty post at a nearby commercial bank to demand for alcoholic drinks at the hotel. It was in the course of this unruly behavior that he threatened to shoot customers if they fail to buy him drinks. He was said to have been angered by the attempt of the twin brothers and their guest to caution him, and subsequently ambushed them outside the hotel and shot them dead. After realising the gravity of his action, he allegedly shot himself dead.
The Ketu case is just one out of many such incidents involving security agents in Lagos and other parts of the country. In September 2015, Mrs. Comfort Idongesit Udoh, wife of Godwin Udoh, a tricycle operator, was shot dead by a policeman over a N2,000 bribe demand in Ijegun area of Lagos. Similarly, Mrs. Beauty Nwankwo was killed by a policeman in October 2015 in Victoria Island, Lagos. There was also the killing of six Igbo traders, who became known as Apo six, in Abuja some years ago. These are just few of the cases in which innocent Nigerians lost their lives to trigger-happy policemen.
Some of our policemen are so unstable that they have been known to kill because of paltry bribes that they demand from motorists and commercial motorcycle operators. Some shoot to kill at the slightest provocation. Some of them at times boast that they can kill their victim and nothing would happen.
We urge the police authorities to use the Ketu case as an example to call trigger-happy cops to order. The policemen should be made to realise that the guns they carry should be used to protect citizens and not to kill them as happened in the Ketu incident. They should never use their guns to terrorise or kill the citizens.
The murder of innocent citizens by Sergeant James raises questions on his mental stability. It appears from reports that he was a well known alcoholic and an unstable character who should have been shown the way out of the force long before he had a chance to commit this triple murder. It is apparent that he had no regard for the rules of his profession, otherwise he would not have been drunk on duty.
The Nigeria Police Force should begin to pay closer attention to the mental health and sense of responsibility of its members, just as the military has a mobile corps that monitors the activities of Army, Naval and Air Force personnel Policemen who are irresponsible and given to drunkenness should not be retained in the force for any reason. The maturity and mental balance of policemen are very important qualities that the force should not trifle with. Guns should not be given to anyone who cannot behave responsibly and keep himself in check at all times. The Police should have a unit that will be charged with the monitoring of the conduct of its officers, especially those who have problems with drinking and emotional stability.
Policeman should be trained not to see themselves as above the laws of the land simply because they bear arms. The top echelon of the NPF should be mindful of the type of people that are recruited into the Force. The current situation in which all manner of people, including those with questionable character, are recruited into the force can only lead to unfortunate incidents such as this. It is important to do character and background checks on prospective recruits to avoid cases like this.
There might be many more drunken and trigger-happy policemen in the force. The Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase, should weed out such undesirable elements. There is the need to keep a tab on every policeman, especially those who are assigned weapons, to ascertain their mental stability to carry arms. Policemen, especially those that are armed with high calibre weapons like AK47, should be monitored regularly to avoid occasional intentional and accidental discharges.
The police force should curb policemen’s high propensity for drunkenness. No policeman should be allowed to drink while on duty. Members of the Force should go for mandatory psychological tests at short intervals to determine their mental stability and suitability to still bear arms. It is through such tests that any maniacal disposition or tendency can be discovered and properly handled.
Although the police authorities have done well by trying and dismissing the erring cop, they should also compensate the families of the three deceased persons killed by the sergeant. The police should also monitor the posting of policemen to public places, including hotels, and ensure that they behave well during such assignments. The duty of a policeman is to protect the people and not to endanger their lives. The onus rests on the leadership of the force to ensure that killer policemen are not unleashed on innocent citizens.
The Ketu case is just one out of many such incidents involving security agents in Lagos and other parts of the country. In September 2015, Mrs. Comfort Idongesit Udoh, wife of Godwin Udoh, a tricycle operator, was shot dead by a policeman over a N2,000 bribe demand in Ijegun area of Lagos. Similarly, Mrs. Beauty Nwankwo was killed by a policeman in October 2015 in Victoria Island, Lagos. There was also the killing of six Igbo traders, who became known as Apo six, in Abuja some years ago. These are just few of the cases in which innocent Nigerians lost their lives to trigger-happy policemen.
Some of our policemen are so unstable that they have been known to kill because of paltry bribes that they demand from motorists and commercial motorcycle operators. Some shoot to kill at the slightest provocation. Some of them at times boast that they can kill their victim and nothing would happen.
We urge the police authorities to use the Ketu case as an example to call trigger-happy cops to order. The policemen should be made to realise that the guns they carry should be used to protect citizens and not to kill them as happened in the Ketu incident. They should never use their guns to terrorise or kill the citizens.
The murder of innocent citizens by Sergeant James raises questions on his mental stability. It appears from reports that he was a well known alcoholic and an unstable character who should have been shown the way out of the force long before he had a chance to commit this triple murder. It is apparent that he had no regard for the rules of his profession, otherwise he would not have been drunk on duty.
The Nigeria Police Force should begin to pay closer attention to the mental health and sense of responsibility of its members, just as the military has a mobile corps that monitors the activities of Army, Naval and Air Force personnel Policemen who are irresponsible and given to drunkenness should not be retained in the force for any reason. The maturity and mental balance of policemen are very important qualities that the force should not trifle with. Guns should not be given to anyone who cannot behave responsibly and keep himself in check at all times. The Police should have a unit that will be charged with the monitoring of the conduct of its officers, especially those who have problems with drinking and emotional stability.
Policeman should be trained not to see themselves as above the laws of the land simply because they bear arms. The top echelon of the NPF should be mindful of the type of people that are recruited into the Force. The current situation in which all manner of people, including those with questionable character, are recruited into the force can only lead to unfortunate incidents such as this. It is important to do character and background checks on prospective recruits to avoid cases like this.
There might be many more drunken and trigger-happy policemen in the force. The Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase, should weed out such undesirable elements. There is the need to keep a tab on every policeman, especially those who are assigned weapons, to ascertain their mental stability to carry arms. Policemen, especially those that are armed with high calibre weapons like AK47, should be monitored regularly to avoid occasional intentional and accidental discharges.
The police force should curb policemen’s high propensity for drunkenness. No policeman should be allowed to drink while on duty. Members of the Force should go for mandatory psychological tests at short intervals to determine their mental stability and suitability to still bear arms. It is through such tests that any maniacal disposition or tendency can be discovered and properly handled.
Although the police authorities have done well by trying and dismissing the erring cop, they should also compensate the families of the three deceased persons killed by the sergeant. The police should also monitor the posting of policemen to public places, including hotels, and ensure that they behave well during such assignments. The duty of a policeman is to protect the people and not to endanger their lives. The onus rests on the leadership of the force to ensure that killer policemen are not unleashed on innocent citizens.
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