Former Inspector General of Police was recently appointed the chairman of the Police Service Commission, amidst some minor dissenting voices. Dozie Onwuzuligbo enumerates the onerous tasks before the new PSC boss.
Sir Mike Okiro, former Inspector General of Police, was on June 12, 2013, sworn-in by President Goodluck Jonathan as the new chairman of the Police Service Commission, thus making him the third person to have chaired that sensitive position under the new democratic dispensation.
His appointment has been applauded in some quarters as a laudable step towards repositioning the Nigeria Police as a formidable force in crime fighting and prevention. Given his pedigree and antecedent as former Inspector-General of Police, a good number of Nigerians cannot but agree that Okiro is equal to the task of taking the Nigeria Police Force via the commission to an enviable height.
The commission is an independent government agency established under Section 153 of the 1999 constitution with the powers to recruit, appoint, promote and exercise disciplinary action over erring police personnel, except the Inspector-General of Police.
The commission has gone through financial and infrastructural constraints since its inauguration on November 28, 2001, with Chief Simon Okeke as chairman. Unfortunately, it has not only been neglected, but also underfunded by previous administrations. It has continued to grapple with enormous challenges which have affected its operational efficiency and effectiveness. Due to inadequate resources and ill-trained manpower, the commission has not been able to investigate various alleged police misconduct, thus had to rely on inconclusive police investigations. The commission has not been able to stamp its authority in the area of discipline of officers of the police force.
Perhaps, this explains why there are many allegations against the police bordering on abuse of office, threat to life, unlawful detention, extra judicial killings, corruption, extortion and harassment, among others yet to be investigated.
These unprofessional conducts have indeed eroded public trust and confidence in the police. Some bad eggs, who were inadvertently recruited into the system, have continued to constitute nuisance, thereby projecting the Nigeria Police in a bad light. The force is not only struggling to save its name, but also battling to maintain law and order as well protect life and property of Nigerians.
Although the Parry Osayande-led Police Service Commission improved in the area of police recruitment, much still needs to be done in ensuring that both serving and incoming police personnel are people of character and proven integrity. Thus, the introduction of polygraph test by the commission to ensure that the right calibre and quality of individuals are recruited into the force is quite commendable. The polygraph test is to identify and eliminate drug addicts, criminals and habitual liars during recruitment exercise. In view of the ongoing reforms in the police force, it is imperative that such tests be extended to serving officers and men at the various zones, commands, formations and even at the divisional levels.
Therefore, the task before Sir Okiro and the new PSC is to ensure that he uses his wealth of experience to attract the much needed funds to the commission to enable it carry out its statutory responsibilities of investigating and exercising disciplinary measures over erring officers and men of the force. If the commission is well funded as it should be, it can effectively monitor the conduct of policemen during elections and be able to tour all the police commands and formations with a view to ascertaining the difficulties facing its personnel in the discharge of their duties.
Moreover, such visits would also afford the chairman and members of the commission the opportunity to meet with state governors, traditional rulers, community leaders, retired police officers and other stakeholders to intimate them on the police reform agenda embarked upon by the federal government.
Nevertheless, he should strive to ensure that officers and men are promoted as at when due. A situation whereby many police personnel are bitter and grumbling over stagnating in a particular rank for many years does not tell well of the commission. Those due for retirement should be retired to pave way for others. Police promotion, especially at the commissioner cadre, should be strictly based on merit, attending relevant promotional courses and passing prescribed examinations.
The issue of discipline should be a factor when considering one for promotion. The President hit the nail on the head when he said during the inauguration ceremony that, “people who are promoted to Assistant Commissioner of Police and above must merit the rank. If you don’t merit the rank, you should be retired from the force because it is better for you not to have enough manpower than for you to have viruses and all kinds of characters in the police force”.
Importantly, Okiro should leave no stone unturned in ensuring that the polygraph test introduced by the commission in 2012 achieves its ultimate goal of eliminating all people of questionable characters during recruitment. In order to effect a meaningful change, he should be mindful of those politicians, who would like to impose their candidates during such exercise. Beyond that, there is the need for the commission to go as far as the person’s village to ascertain his real identity and personality.
Furthermore, he should work closely with other members of the commission, who are experts in their own field and carry them along in major policy decisions. There should be regular training for staff of the commission in developing and improving their capacity for better service delivery. In that respect, the commission should work closely with some reputable training institutions such as the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria, ASCON; Centre for Management Development and the Industrial Training Fund, ITF in training its workforce.
Okiro is also saddled with the task of ensuring that the ongoing construction of its corporate head office located at the Jabi District, Abuja, awarded on December 13, 2011 is completed and commissioned on record time.
It is said that to whom much is given, much is expected. Nigerians do not expect any less from Okiro knowing that his appointment was based on his background and track records. No doubt, his job is quite demanding and challenging. It is another opportunity for Okiro to carve a niche for himself by leaving indelible prints in the history of the commission. He should, therefore, justify this confidence repose on him by taking tough but firm decisions in transforming the police force in terms of quality recruitment, regular promotion and imbibing the right professional ethics to all its officers and men.
In this 21st Century policing, Nigerians are indeed yearning for a police force that respects and protects the rights of its citizens; a police force that will carry out its responsibilities professionally and respond to crime pro-actively.