Taking into cognizance the prevailing values and norms among the people in Nigeria and a call by some stakeholders for community policing in the country, a Nigerian scholar and researcher, Dr. Aminu Musa Audu said Nigeria’s value system and norms have been bastardised against the workability of community policing in the country. Joseph Undu writes.

Introduction
Dr Aminu Musa Audu is a Nigerian scholar and researcher recently graduated with a PhD in Sociology at the University of Liverpool United Kingdom. His research focuses on the impact of the UK-Department for International Development UK-DFID’s community policing initiative in Nigeria.

His research, assessed as being the first of its kind, has won ‘High praise’ in Britain. Dr Audu, also as a member of team of world-class academics and professionals has offered lectures/trainings to the Overseas Immersion Program of the BA (Hons) Criminology and Security Studies (Singapore police, prison officials and other defence and security operatives) at the University of Liverpool.

He has received several awards for voluntary services in the North-West of England and has served on the Finance, Building and Staffing Committee as a Governor to Smithdown Primary School UK.

There is perception of crime and insecurity in Nigerians
I must emphasize that the issue of security is so central to the survival of the nation and the world. The environment must be safe for everybody to live and work for the overall development of the society. However, the situation is such that there is perception of crime and security problem among the people in Nigeria. Instances are too many to mention.

For example, there is problem of youth insurgency such as Boko Haram, kidnapping of people, including close relations for ransom, armed robbery, and domestic violence. There are also cases of intra/inter-communal crisis, youth thuggery and corruption in the country. Under this condition, the roads are unsafe, offices are unsafe. Farms and markets are also unsafe.

The security personnel and those in government at every level of the country are unsafe even in the Presidential Villa; Abuja the seat of government in the country, there is no guarantee of safety. Family members living in same compound are afraid of one another because nobody can predict the next line of action and activities of the person living next to him or her.

Everybody seemed to have been silenced to fate. Thousands of lives have been lost and the trauma this situation has brought upon the people is alarming. So, in the context of this scenario, there is no meaningful contribution, either at the individual or group level that can impact positively on the people and economy of the country. Nevertheless, Nigeria is the only country we have despite some insinuations and counter insinuations here and there. It is the responsibility of all the citizenry to ensure that the system is made to work.

Dr Aminu Musa Audu

Community policing is achievable in Nigeria under President Muhammadu Buhari’s government
As far as I am concerned, I have no doubt in my mind about President Buhari’s ability to ensure that community policing implementation is achieved in Nigeria. There was a National Security Summit held in Abuja on the 17th August, 2015 organised in partnership with the Sun Newspapers. This came up barely three months of Buhari’s Presidency.

At the Summit, Mr President was physically present and various issues of concern to national security were highlighted. Top on the agenda was the urgent need to re-focus on the implementation of community policing in Nigeria. Both the speeches presented by Mr President and the then Inspector-General of Police Mr Arase hugely reflected community policing as a matter of priority.

Following the reported displacement of insurgents from their base at Sambisa forest, the Federal Government reiterated the importance of information flow between the public and security agents to control the Boko Haram menace. However, besides Buhari, there are also other important components that must be brought to bear in this calculation.

Lack of adequate knowledge of the concept and philosophy of community policing
First, there is lack of adequate knowledge of the concept and philosophy of community policing, risk factors and its dynamics, the appropriate model and the kind of culture and sociological conditions that supports this practice in the context of Nigeria. Sadly enough, community policing is the same thing as engaging the vigilante group in Nigeria. Second, corruption dominates the governance system in Nigeria.

For instance, despite being alleged of false declaration of assets by the Code of Conduct Tribunal CCT, and money laundering by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission EFCC, Dr Bukola Saraki is still presiding over the Senate and the National Assembly in the country without any intention to resign or any action of the Senate towards impeachment process.

Look at the way the James Ibori’s imprisonment saga in London was celebrated in the National Assembly and other locations in Nigeria. Some lawmakers are shamelessly seen following alleged criminals to court as if they were attending political rallies in Nigeria. This goes to question the integrity of the entire Senate.

Although there are still pious ones among them, the people are made to confidently hold on to the belief and impression that Senators of similar criminal status dominate the law-making organ of governance in Nigeria. By implication, it would be ironical that same institution is expected to make laws and be obeyed by citizens in the country. The judiciary is another area of concern.

An individual who has been caught in the act of stealing a goat in the market place faces severe punishment in the hands of the public. However, the same public will celebrate his counterparts who are caught stealing billions of naira. How do you justify this? The value system in Nigeria does not favour community policing. The prevailing values and norms among the people in the country has been bastardised against the workability of community policing in Nigeria, unfortunately. Nevertheless, I still foresee hope.

Community policing option started in the United States and the UK
In this context, we must recognise the UK-Department for International Development UK-DFID, towards ensuring that there is peace and security in Nigeria. There was a UK-DFID’s community policing initiative duly overseen in 2003/4. This was aimed to foster robust relationship between the police and public to reduce crime in Nigeria.

I would like to remind us that community policing option started in the United States and the UK in the early 70s and has become the solution to security concerns in the West and globally. However, during this period of community policing policy implementation to date and despite statement of satisfaction by the partnering body in Nigeria- Justice, Growth and Security, the perception of crime has tripled in Nigeria.

This situation has constituted an embarrassment to the nation and international community as well. This has put a question mark on the efficacy of this kind of policing strategy in Nigeria.

I have achieved global leadership of this important area of research
My doctoral research thesis entitled “Community policing: Exploring the police and community relationship for crime control in Nigeria” under supervision team led by Professor Sandra Walklate FAcSS (Eleanor Rathbone Chair of Sociology and the Editor-in-Chief of the British Journal of Criminology) was not only the first of its kind anywhere in the world, it would revolutionise in terms of policy and practice the effectiveness of community policing in Nigeria and other similar economies. The report has shown that I have achieved global leadership of this important area of research and this goes with it an enormous responsibility.

My next line of action
Unlike as it is the usual practice where research is merely for academic exercise ending up in the archives without anything to show for it, my research was fundamentally designed to assess the impact, of the UK-DFID’s overseen community policing initiative in Nigeria and to take it down to the next level of development.

Having attained this level in my chosen profession, it is time to embark on the next stage of my research career in the realm of sociological criminology. I think that I must engage in advocacy with the public to understand and appreciate the essence of community policing as the credible path-way to achieve community safety and security in Nigeria.

I will go into it in several ways. I should be able to present my findings in the context of community policing at conferences and seminars. For instance, I had an invite to present my research paper entitled; “Where else can we live in peace? Boko Haram insurgency, community policing and community safety in Nigeria’ at the April, 2017 Annual General Meeting of the British Sociological Association University of Manchester United Kingdom.

This invite is a build-up on similar paper entitled: ‘‘Under the Shadow of Boko Haram’: Why it was difficult to police the insurgent activities in Nigeria’ which I presented at the April, 2013 Annual General Meeting of the Association in London.

My book entitled ‘Community Policing in Nigeria’ (forthcoming), being developed in fulfilment of the external examiner’s recommendations, will produce the required knowledge to provide pathways to policy makers, police managers, academics, researchers, and western countries interested in security reforms in the context of community policing in Nigeria and other countries of the global south.

The book will be published as a form of research monograph. It would certainly be identifying the nature, and dynamics of the complex socio-cultural and economic circumstances and risk factors that have resulted to community policing inertia of different magnitudes. This book and other publications in internally excellent peer-reviewed journals will present an enduring community policing model for implementation to achieve crime control in Nigeria and beyond.