•Lawrence Alobi
Lawrence Alobi is a retired Commissioner of Police who even after retirement, has remained active on security matters. In this interview, he talks about the current security challenges in the country, withdrawal of policemen from VIPs and the best way to tackle threats of insecurity in Nigeria, reports Weekend Trust.
Excerpts:
Insecurity threats have spiked in recent times. What in your view is responsible?
It is disturbing. I served this country for 35 years as a police officer and retired as commissioner of police, FCT, in 2007. What has happened in the last few months or days is very disturbing and challenging to the nation.
This is a result of some factors which include, one, the government hasn’t developed that political will to say ‘no’ to insecurity in this country. We need to tell ourselves the truth. It’s our country. Nobody will come to intervene; we are the prime beneficiaries of a safe and secure Nigeria. So, I think we need to be concerned about the security of our country and how we should move forward.
Section 14B of the Constitution, provides that security and welfare of citizens is the primary purpose of government. Government should know that its primary obligation as a government is to ensure the country is safe and secure for its citizens and to go about their lawful businesses without intimidation.
Few days ago, 25 secondary school girls were kidnapped in Kebbi, a general was killed and so forth.
It’s disturbing and embarrassing. I think the security agencies, though trying, are handicapped in a lot of ways. Today, security is technology driven. What stops the government from massively procuring drones for regular surveillance of the country and black spots in vulnerable areas? Let them monitor the airspace and the military, police and all other securities on the ground to intervene and take action whenever they identify such challenges.
Security is key and drives development, good governance and ensures stability of the nation.
So, the government should see security as very important, in terms of capacity building, training, motivation, and equipment.
What is the implication of the recent federal government’s order for the withdrawal of policemen from guarding VIPs?
I’m sorry to say, but the policy is a panicky measure. The police is the lead agency in internal security. They’re trained to protect life and property, maintain law and order and prevent crime. These are the core functions of the police.
The question is, why are they taking it from the police, the lead agency, that is primarily under the law, the statutory function, and giving it to civil defence? Does it mean that Civil Defence is more competent than the police, or has the police failed? There are implications. The point is that Civil Defence is not trained for such security operations.
They protect critical infrastructure, they are involved as rangers, mining and so forth. So, I don’t know how the VIPs would be taken to them. It is a vague statement.
The government should have trained 50,000 more policemen and increased its strength as they have designated sections for VIP protection. Increase the number of policemen and then beef up the security of the local government.
The United Nations said one policeman – 400 persons and we have about 230 million Nigerians. The ratio is greatly inadequate.
What the government should do if it wants to fix security is fix the police.
Today’s policing and security is technologically driven.
What stops the government from procuring more drones to monitor our forests? When they monitor our forests, and they find where these people are, bombard the area and throw these people out or get them dead or alive. You don’t negotiate with criminals. If you negotiate with criminals, it means you have succumbed and negotiating from a point of weakness, not strength.
Part of the reasons given is that the required personnel to be used to combat crime are being attached to VIPs, taking them away from their main duty.
When I was in charge of federal operations, General Gusau was NSA, we identified political appointees who deserved security, orderly and so forth. They design, agree and approve, not just cash and carry. This was how we minimised the abuse because it’s all based on need. The VIPs also need security.
It will not favour the police because some of them are made to do menial jobs by the VIPs…?
I agree. I met a policeman at the airport carrying an AK-47 and carrying a Senator’s handbag. I ordered him to return the handbag to the man at the airport and told him he was not there to carry a handbag but for security. Their functions should be defined. Rules of engagement, code of conduct and the categories of VIP should be defined because VIPs need protection, criminals can take advantage because the Civil Defence are not used to this kind of security and the VIP will be more vulnerable to attacks.
Is the rehabilitation of repentant bandits a good approach towards solving insecurity?
For me, it is nonsensical. These people have an ideology and you can’t convince them. They can be spies and just pretend to have repented, but you don’t know their thoughts. Like Max Schlesinger would say, there’s no mind control on their face. You cannot see it on their faces. I don’t think it is right. They have developed loyalty and may share information to the bandits, their former masters. I don’t think that policy should be encouraged. We treat criminals as criminals. When I was in the service, my command to all my officers was treat them as criminals, and ensure our citizens are safe and secure.
Our borders are porous. Nigeria can have a system where they can at least create a wall around our borders, no matter what it costs us.
Do we have the resources for that?
Everything starts from somewhere. The longest journey starts with a step, and ends with a step. We should conquer fear. Resources we are spending, the money they are being syphoned through corruption and so forth, if our leaders are sincere and committed to serve the country, and ensure that the country is safe and secure for all our citizens, we can start something. Our borders are very porous, people come in at will, attack us and leave.
Will erecting wall, work?
We must shield ourselves. Why do we have walls in our houses? That, at least to a large extent, helps to repel the criminals.
Haven’t we passed that stage?
What is our option? There’s no way we can protect our borders, we don’t have the manpower to police those borders. The immigration, police and military or customs can’t cover those borders. They are a great number and are porous. We can’t leave ourselves vulnerable to our enemies.
Are our security agencies overwhelmed? Recall during former president Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, elections were extended by six weeks and mercenaries brought in and there was an improvement in the security situation. Would you recommend the use of mercenaries in the current situation?
Security is dynamic, our operational strategies also have to be dynamic. Mercenaries are not coming in because they love Nigeria. Nigerians have a stake, it’s our country, we should be passionate about our stake. We can call for assistance, in terms of resources, equipment, but in terms of mercenaries coming, I don’t see how safe that would be.
I think our security agencies are capable of controlling the situation. When the Maitatsine crisis broke out, the police effectively checkmated it. If the government has the will, and security agencies and Nigerian citizens are determined, we can achieve it.
What do you make of the proliferation of security outfits, would it help?
It has never helped. It creates rivalry among the heads of the agencies and depletes the resources that could be effectively used. Like I earlier said, the police is the mother force of the country. The DSS, Military, Civil Defence, Road Safety, they all came after the Police. Currently, the police is greatly depleted in terms of manpower.
If we make it a policy that we must recruit 20,000 policemen yearly, and improve our police training institutions, make it habitable, and conducive for training, where people can absorb and imbibe knowledge, it will function better.
In other climes, experienced retired and serving officers, are brought together by the government as a tag team to advise the government. The point is that proliferation is creating more problems. It brings rivalry, depletion of resources, and doesn’t make for effective coordination.
First, the government should set up a giant Police Force and give it the leadership it deserves. That will help the country. Agencies, like DSS, FRSC are doing very well but more proliferation, like the Forest Guards, is not necessary. These forests are within a given state. Why not empower the Police and the DSS in that state? The police air wing can be empowered to monitor all parts of the state within that jurisdiction. There isn’t a need for another agency.
For the forest guard, there are many uncovered spaces in Nigeria, where terrorists, insurgents, bandits take refuge and attack people. How can it be manned if another agency is not created?
The forest is located in a particular local government and state, right? If there’s already police, brigade, garrison commander, DSS director, civil defence office there in the state they normally have security meetings. The Air Force and the Police air wing can team up for area surveillance, and a joint operation.
Where is the police getting it wrong?
Leadership. Secondly, they do not have the resources they need to work with. If you want somebody to work and you don’t equip, empower or give them enablement, how will they succeed? If the police are funded and with the right leadership in place, I can assure you this country will change.
What have they done with all the resources donated?
When you talk about donations, how many vehicles are donated? I come from Ikom, Cross River State, about four local governments don’t have petrol vehicles. In a situation where there’s a crisis, the DPO has to go there to review the scene of the crisis on a motorbike. Take a statistic, how many vehicles does one division local government need? Do that, let it be based on need. As a CP in Abuja, I must have two vehicles on standby at the headquarters to respond to distress calls and one for patrol. Now, distress calls don’t have vehicles, they depend on charity, that’s not good enough.
Donations does not meet the needs of the police in each local government. We need to empower the police and the government should fund it.
As a young officer, they had fuel dumps, where the police go to re-fuel at the end of the month and the government pays. The police is sure of having fuel in their cars to go on patrol at each time of the day and to respond to the calls.These are the remedies they can do, but they don’t.
In your view, what should be the number of police forces for an estimated 220 million population in Nigeria today?
First, how many policemen would each local government require? Do they have the DPO, commissioner’s office in each of the divisions? Then look at the population, the spread, the topography of the spread, the landscape of the spread and so forth, landmass, I mean. The United Nations says 400 persons – one police, police personnel. But if you divide 220 million by 500 policemen, what’s the difference, what’s the ratio? Very minimal.
So, I think that it should at least be, for me, at least based on the security challenges in the country, it should be at least one policeman to 50 citizens. We should even bring it, higher than what the United Nations. It should be one policeman to 50 citizens. And the government should consistently employ police, to make sure that the strength is enough to secure the country.
Speaking about recruitment, how can the police and Police Service Commission reconcile their in-house tussle to allow for a hitch free recruitment?
They don’t need any conflict or disagreement, they have a common goal, recruit. They have defined functions, the police as an institution has its role, so does the Police service commission. When they harmonise and collaborate in peace and understanding. They should work in harmony without any clash.
What about allowing for state police?
State police, in a way, was being practised during the Babangida era. From the rank of DSP down, returned to their states. I was then a DSP, I was sent to my local government in Ikom in Cross River. So that was like state police. Because from that rank, you all go back to your state of origin. But then, the police were not necessarily being controlled by politicians like it is today. Today, the Nigerian Police Force is over-controlled by politicians.
