A CRITICAL EVALUATION OF THE ETHICS OF NIGERIAN POLICE IN RELATION WITH CORRUPTION THROUGH THE LENSE OF OMOLUABI
INTRODUCTION
The Police is one of the most important institutions in the society. They are entrusted with the right to protect the citizen even when that involves the use of violence. More is expected of the Police than most modern professional jobs. They are expected to be brave and not show any human emotion like fear, shock, surprise, etc even in the face of serious tragedies like death, deformity, etc Undoubtedly, peace, safety and security are both necessary and indispensable requirements for development and the attainment of good quality of life for any human society. They provide the requisite enabling environment for citizens to live and work towards social, economic and political development of the society (Groenewald & Peake, 2004). The significance of peace, safety and security to mankind cannot be over-emphasized as the socio-economic and political development of any society depends on the security system available in such society. By the same token, their absence stifles the human capacity to develop and heavily compromises the development and quality of life of both individuals and society. Furthermore, insecurity impacts negatively on all citizens through losses of property, life and limb, or through loss of confidence from fear of violence. It is against this backdrop that the delivery of safety and security is considered a justifiable public good and the very essence of the state (Lubuva, 2004). Human safety and security are indeed human rights having a value of their own and serving an instrumental function in the construction of human contentment and prosperity (Odinkalu 2005).
Over the ages, emerging forms of human, social and political organization have stimulated a necessity for the protection and safety of the individual, family, community and the nation. The need for human security therefore pervades the entire fabrics of human nature and existence, and is at the cornerstone of human and societal development. Hence, human beings and societies since the beginning of time have developed measures to safeguard themselves and their properties against threat. Some of these measures predate the institutionalization of the public police and other uniformed institutions. In the present age, state remains dominant in the security sector; as such, the legitimacy and right of any state over the people can best be upheld only to the extent to which it can guarantee the protection of life and property of its citizens. Therefore, one of the primary duties of the state is to guarantee the peace, safety and security of the citizens, including their protection from social problems.Modern societies are characterized by what can be termed as a state-organized specialist police organization or formal police force. The police are responsible for the enforcement of criminal law, prevention of crime, detection, apprehension, investigation, detention and prosecution of crime suspects
The effective sustenance of the Nigerian society hinged on an efficient law enforcement process, the role of the police in ensuring social justice, peace and harmony cannot be overemphasized. However, despite the fact that in the administration of justice in Nigeria, the police have the sweeping powers of arrest and prosecution of offenders, the Nigerian State recently has consistently witnessed unquantifiable measure of terror, lawlessness, kidnapping, ethno-religious conflict, social disorder, armed robbery, and senseless vindictive assassinations whose causes and perpetrators have defiled security scrutiny and apprehension. This ugly incidence brings the efficiency and effectiveness of the Nigerian Police to questioning and disrepute. Thus, one cannot but agree with the position that Nigeria Police Force is a victim of convoluted systemic corruption which has become pervasive and cancerous in the country‟s public service. This study x-ray prevalence and consequences of corruption in Nigeria Police Force
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