Chris Ezike who assumed duty as Commissioner of Police, Edo State, and only two weeks ago, has left no one in doubt as to the character and texture of his mission – to drastically reduce crime in the state. Ha has the gift of creative ideas and the intellectual capacity to unfurl them even as his courage to ensure that his men do what is right is not in doubt. In this engagement with our Editor OSAZUA IVBAZE, he says “if you are adding value to project Nigeria, you are the reason we should celebrate.
Exerpts:-
You just assumed duty as the new Commissioner Police Edo State, How has it been; what challenges did you meet on ground and how have you been addressing them?
Thank you very much, I am barely two weeks now and its been good. I met a structure on ground. I took over from my friend and colleague. We have evaluated the structure on ground. We are just trying to make some interventions that will operationally enhance what we have on ground so that we can make progress. You are already aware that armed robbery and kidnapping are crimes we have noticed in Edo State and these are fueled by cultism. Edo State is not the worst of the states in the south-south geographical equation, but we must stay on top of our game, so that we don’t suddenly go into what other states within the geographical region are experiencing. The Ore-Okada, Ekiadolor road is a flash point; the Igbanke area heading towards Agbor is a flash point; the Ibilo, Auchi are all flash points. We identified them and we have made interventions. We hope that the challenges will be mitigated.
You just mentioned cultism and this reminds me of what you said recently that cultism is responsible or drives crimes in the society. But the problem is that some of these cults are registered with Corporate Affairs Commission and there’s no punishment for belonging to a cult, and so it becomes difficult to actually curb cultism as a movement.
Well, it’s a little bit complicated situation. The confraternities that are registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission do not go by the same names they are known, so can say ‘wearing a toga during the day and removing the toga and wearing another toga at might.”
For example the mafites, the black axe and so on have other names, with which they registered at the Corporate Affairs Commission, and they come out and get these things injected with violence. The laws are not yet strong on cultism but because cultism fuels commission of other crimes, you will discover that whenever you are dealing with cultism, you are also dealing with consequential crimes like murder, armed robbery, kidnapping.
So it has offered us a leeway of charging them for the offences committed rather than dwelling on cultism. The law on cultism has just captured students and public officers; it has not taken into consideration that artisans, other people that are not public officers are also into cultism.
There has to be a comprehensive advocacy that will lead to amendment of some of these laws and I think that is what we would want to see happen. Some other states have already taken the bull by the horn and I’m sure with the passion and willingness of the leadership of Edo State they will follow suit.
In recent times, Ambrose Ali University has been a hell of a place for cult related activities. How have you been addressing that?
Ekpoma has a university and universities and their environments have challenges of cultism. Ekpoma has not faired too well in that regard. A lot of students live off campus and the activities rub off on the large community of Ekpoma even extending towards Irua and so on. Like I said, cultists are criminals and could be students, lectures or teachers or lab attendant. As far as I’m concerned cultists are criminals.
We have noted the pattern and trend that when examination is drawing near, cult activities get on the increase. Just 5 – 6 days ago, there were cult disturbances / clashes that led to the death of 4 people in Ekpoma. we have since taken up the challenge, a lot of arms have been recovered like AK 47, rifles, pump actions, locally made guns within our higher institutions and within the neighbourhood. I think 4 – 6 people were also arrested. The screening is going on so that we can isolate the wheat from the chaff and get to the next level.
Next week Nigeria will be 55 and the police has been playing a role and that role can be better seen by you but better appreciated by Nigerians for whom you’ve been rendering services. But as an insider, how would you assess the police at 55 in terms of education, training, crime detection and successful prosecution of cases?
The police has done so well. From 1861 when the police came to Nigeria; Pre-colonial, colonial and Post-colonial police we have all been part and parcel of the fundamental changes in our evolution as a nation. The metamorphosis of Nigeria cannot be complete without the Nigerian Police Force. In internal security we’ve been the leaders and we have been the pacesetters. We may be quick in recounting what we have not done right but I think what we have done right to keep Nigeria united and relatively free from crime has been enormous and is worth commendation.
In term of training, capacity building, I think the current Inspector General Solomon Arase has faired very well. Police Institutions are undergoing a lot of reforms; the teaching staffs are themselves being retrained, while facilities are being up graded. In terms of community participation and community engagement the paradigm has shifted. The best practices all over the world is now community policing.
The last security summit in Abuja which the Inspector General hosted, the emphasis was on community participation and engagement, we must engage traditional rulers, the community, the daddies and mummies who make up the community in order to stem the tide of crime. The reasons are obvious. The suspects are within the communities, the victims are also within the communities. So the quantum of intelligence in the communities can better be imagined. If you do it well crime will be mitigated; if the marriage between the police and the community is mid-wifed well, crime will obviously be mitigated and I think we’ve done well. We can do better.
Are there no areas of improvement?
That’s why I said we can do better. Capacity building is not a one-off thing, we will continue to build capacities, engage civil society, we will continue to engage the community. We will continue to partner strategically with the private sector in order to drive the wheels of security.
Here in Edo State, to what extent are you prepared to create a platform that would promote constructive interface between you and the media.
I’ve already started. The NUJ was the first courtesy visit I received in my office and I have promised them I’ll visit the NUJ house and make the interface a very frequent endeavour. I have also started my familiarization visits. Within two weeks, I have been able to visit 8 divisions and the key thing is to interface with the community and my police men. I want to get feed backs from them about the activities of police men within their area, it is very important. If the paradigm is shifting to community engagement and participation, there must be a feed back to ensure that it is working otherwise, it becomes counter productive. So we are very willing for a robust partnership.
Recently, we watched you on television giving/dishing out orders to traffic police men who are now on the streets helping to control traffic. According to reports, they have been doing well. Now on sustainability, How do you intend to sustain the tempo.
Very well, I will. What I have done on a sustainable basis is that personnel injection to the state traffic department is on a permanent basis, They are not there on special duty; they are there permanently. I am working out some welfare for them; it might not be in terms of money. For example the reflective jackets, rain coats to prevent them from the hazards of rain and the protection they require. Because the indiscipline in road usage is a notorious fact and most cases these traffic personnel are molested and they are human beings as well and have blood.
I think they have started well; we have the will to sustain them. We call on members of the public to also cooperate with them; It obviously takes two to tango; the controller and the controlled must be on the same page to work harmoniously.
You have a desire to see that the duties of your office are adequately discharged to ensure that a new chapter is brought to bear on policing in Edo State but we cannot rule out the possibility of some elements within the force or within the command denting the image of the force. How do you intend to checkmate that.
Just as you don’t have a crime free society, you don’t also have a hundred percent impeccable organization. In every organization there are people who would walk against the system but the system in itself has an inherent mechanism of monitoring challenges and correcting them from those observed challenges.
I have made it very clear to my men that you cannot be a cultist, and be giving operational information to hoodlums, that will not happen under my watch We pray that we sustain our integrity and our profile to do public good.
There is something we hear police saying all the time but is not really on ground; that is BAIL. Police will tell you bail is free but the opposite is the case when you get to the police station.
Bail continues to be free, bail is free We know it as a fact we also know that money is extorted by some unscrupulous policemen while granting bail. Now the same offence awaits the giver and the taker and we encourage people not to give, let them go a step higher and report bail demands to designated officers. If you get to the station and the IPO says bail is not free, go to the CPO or go to the DPO you can as well go to the Area Commander. Be patient to spend some extra 30 minutes or 1 hour to ensure that things are done properly.
We are too impatient as a people to be able to do the correct thing. Let’s stretch our patience a little bit and we will get it right.
We heard it said in some quarters that the problem with the police, has to do with the attitude of politicians. Instead of allowing the police to use its men to safeguide the society, they use police men as personal body guards. For example you have a politician with about 7 police men moving around with him whereas outside there are no enough police men to combat crime.
There’s already a presidential directive to that effect and the IG has ensured that directive to all commands is carried out. “Withdraw police men from unauthorized people.” We have already done that. Part of the people we are posting to traffic and using for interventions in the places I’ve mentioned are the people we have withdrawn from unauthorized people. They may not be only to politicians, they may also be to private individuals who are not entitled to such deployments. And what we have been doing is obeying the presidential directive and it has been working.
At this crucial time as we celebrate 55 as a nation what is your message to the people of Edo State and indeed Nigeria.
We will continue to add value to project Nigeria. Nigeria is not for the president alone, Repairing Nigeria is not for only the governor it is a task for all of us. Wherever you find yourself, ask yourself the question “am I adding value?” If you are not adding value to project Nigeria you are the reason why we shouldn’t celebrate but if you are adding value wherever you find yourself whether you’re an artisan, public servant, politician, police man then you have every reason to celebrate Nigeria.
So my message to the people of Edo State is, please keep adding value to Nigeria and the country would be better for it.
