The Nigerian Police Force will not tolerate any claim of “accidental discharge” by its officers henceforth, a spokesperson said Thursday.
Speaking Thursday, the spokesperson, Emmanuel Ojukwu, said it was the police’s responsibility to provide security and safety for every citizen.
“There is nothing like ‘accidental discharge’,” he said. “Every gun has a safety mode. We deal with any police officer that says that and charge him or her for murder. We will not spare such a person.”
He said the police has more widows and orphans than any other establishment in Nigeria.
He was speaking at a media chat organized by a non-governmental organization, 1-Nigeria Initiative.
Mr. Ojukwu also lamented that “the system” did not adequately recognize and compensate members of the Force.
“We have more widows and orphans in the police than anywhere else and we are not even recognized or compensated,” he said.
He disclosed that the Force has trained a lot of officers called the Vigilante Support Officers to help coordinate vigilante groups on how to operate within communities.
He explained that vigilante groups were a form of the informal policing system and very important in Nigeria as they know their communities better than an outsider.
Mr. Ojukwu noted that the police all over the world partnered with vigilantes as the services of vigilantes were needed to save the lives of the people within a community.
Mr. Ojukwu also said it was the police’s responsibility to provide security and safety for every citizen.
“There is nothing like ‘accidental discharge’,” he said. “Every gun has a safety mode. We deal with any police officer that says that and charge him or her for murder. We will not spare such a person.”
He said the Nigerian Police was working towards improving the response time for distress calls to five to ten minutes by creating enough stand-by cars for its men.
“We may not be the best but call us when you are in distress and we will be at your service within five to ten minutes of your call,” he said.
According to him, the Nigerian Police has many colleges all over the country and a lot was being done to improve and ensure betters standards at the colleges.
He called on the public to help police officers stay off corruption by not encouraging it.
He said if an illegal or outrageous demand was made by a police officer on a certain case, such a case should be reported to the highest authorities at any nearby police office.
“Exercise your rights,” he said. “When you know your rights and you insist on them, nobody will outshine you. Please report any illegal act and help us control our police officers.”
