Treat security agencies with respect- Police urges Nigerians

Police Command in Enugu State has urged Nigerians to treat the force and other security agencies with respect rather than dwelling on their wrongdoings.

Avocats SANs Frontiers (ASF) France otherwise known as Lawyers Without<br />Borders ‘SAFE’ Project, in partnership with the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) organised the round table. Photo/ NAN

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Avocats SANs Frontiers (ASF) France otherwise known as Lawyers Without
Borders ‘SAFE’ Project, in partnership with the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) organised the round table.

Erivwode said the citizens had civic responsibility of partnering with security agencies instead of dwelling on the wrong they felt they had committed against them.

He said, “The security agencies are part of the society and it is condemnable for any police officer to use privilege given to him to violate the dignity and rights of others.

“There is need to build a system whereby report, arrest and prosecution processes were done without wrong to anyone.

“Citizens and those that protect lives and property should be sensitised on their rights and laws of the land,” Erivwode said.

He however, charged the judiciary to stand tall and seek justice for all as well as rise to the crime wave of people displaying wealth they could not account for.

“People now celebrate crimes as parents no longer ask their children their source of wealth while religious and community leaders keep silent over the moral decadence,” he said.

Country Director, Baywood Foundation, Mr Chukwudi Ojielo noted that emotional and psychological torture was worse than physical one.

According to him, suspects experience torture because there is no trust between the security agencies and people.

Ojielo said that people needed to build confidence and good relationship with the police to end torture.

“It is like this because the system is not functioning and no amount can equate the suffering these people go through in the hands of security officers,” he said.

Speaking also, the Public Relations Officer, Nigeria Correctional Service, Enugu, Mr Chukwuemeka Monday advocated for training to enable the uniform officers perform optimally.

This training, he said, required funding to carry out and agencies could not afford it.

He therefore, called on the organisers to support them in area of training and manpower development.

Earlier, the Head of Office, ASF France in Nigeria, Mrs Angela Uwandu said the aim of the programme was to make recommendations on how to end human rights violations.

This, she said, included torture, extra judicial killings and arbitrary detentions by security agencies in the country.

Uwandu added that the discussants contributions and recommendations would form bases on their plan to end torture in Enugu state.

“The law has defined the role of the security agencies and If they don’t respect the law, at the end of the day, it comes back to hurt all of us.

“Some of us here are victims of torture directly or indirectly and ENDSARS protest showed that a lot of policemen abused human rights because of the fallout,” she said.

Representatives of the police, army, the DSS, NCS, Civil Society Organizations, the judiciary and the media attended the meeting.