By Grace Udofia

The brutality, partisanship and lawlessness allegedly exhibited by the Nigeria Police Force in recent polls conducted in some states of the federation have been described as a disservice to Nigerians and a threat to national peace.

A group, Citizens’ Cultural Renaissance Initiative, CICURI, which made the observation in Abuja, called on the National Assembly to take urgent steps to halt the ugly trend before it hurts the country and its people.

In the statement  by its president, Lawrence Davis, the group recalled with dismay the several attacks unleashed on the defenceless citizens of Edo, Ondo and Rivers State by the police all in their attempts to secure victory for a particular party.

The group said it was alarmed and forced to wonder if the police were truly a friend of the people given the partisanship exhibited by the officers and men during the last three state elections.

It said: “In the Edo and Ondo elections, we observed disgraceful scenarios in which policemen were engaging in ballot box snatching and cash distribution in favour of the ruling party, while destroying votes garnered by the opposition, and beating up their agents.

“This regrettable situation increased in dimension during the December legislative rerun election in Rivers State, where a certain chief superintendent of police was caught on camera by a television crew physically assaulting INEC staff in an attempt to overpower them and change the election results in favour of the ruling party.”