As preparations for the campaigns for next year’s general elections scheduled to commence formally on September 28 gather momentum, there has been a reported surge in applications by politically exposed persons and other Very Important Personalities (VIPs) for special police protection. This is particularly against the backdrop of the current high rate of insecurity across the country. Indeed, even before now, the sheer number of policemen and other security agents attached to VIPs, including politicians and political office holders, wealthy businessmen, entertainment and music stars, among others, has been widely perceived as dysfunctional and inimical to collective public safety.

With a total staff strength of approximately 371, 800 officers and men as at 2016 to a population of about 200 million people, Nigeria is severely under-policed. The requisite ratio of one policeman to 400 residents as stipulated by the United Nations is far from being met in Nigeria where the level of insecurity ideally requires a far higher number of policemen to citizens than the international prescription, to effectively tackle crime.

We thus have on our hands a paradoxical situation. Insufficient number of policemen is a key causal factor of high rate of crimes across the country. But an inordinate proportion of the relatively few policemen available are deployed to guard privileged individuals, thereby further worsening and endangering public safety. In the final analysis, the safety of both the elite and the masses is compromised and life continues to diminish in value.

Even though President Muhammadu Buhari had in 2015 directed that 10,000 policemen be recruited into the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) every year for five years, it is not clear how far this target has been met, especially as the recruitment process has been characterised by needless disputes between the Police Service Commission (PSC) and the police force over which of them has the power to undertake the task, resulting in litigation at some point. The high crime rate has also resulted in high casualties among the police, with many being killed or wounded by criminals, while others routinely retire and some are dismissed for misconduct.

It is unjust and immoral for government to prioritise VIP security over general public safety, as safeguarding the lives and property of all categories of citizens is the primary responsibility of the state and the basis of its legitimacy. In any case, continually increasing the number of policemen deployed to protect privileged citizens is unsustainable in the long run. It is eminently more reasonable to work towards having a police force that is adequately manned, equipped, empowered and motivated to patrol, maintain surveillance over and ensure safety in urban and rural public spaces and communities, to drastically reduce general level of insecurity for all and guarantee individual security for the rich and the poor alike.

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More effective deployment of technology in crime prevention and detection will also help considerably in reducing pressure on police manpower and enhance greater efficiency in the provision of security for all. While it is inevitable that police protection will be provided for certain categories of public office holders, for example, the present number of policemen currently deployed indiscriminately to protect all manner of supposed VIPs is indefensible and the situation should be remedied urgently. Private individuals who believe that they need special protection should avail themselves of the services of private security organisations and these in turn should be properly regulated by government, with requisite standards of manpower training and specialist security management capacity. This will in turn create jobs and be a boost to the economy, at least to some extent.