Force PRO cautions public against attack on policemen

The Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, has cautioned the public against attacking policemen because of any unpleasant encounter with them.

He said rather than breaching the law, aggrieved persons should follow proper channels to lodge their complaint to appropriate authorities on any form of misconduct by police personnel.

Adejobi, in a statement issued to newsmen on Monday in Abuja, said the call followed a trending video where some individuals assaulted a police officer and attempted to disarm him by dragging his loaded AK47 rifle.

He said that some sections of the media had deliberately misquoted his earlier reaction to the incident, by portraying him as endorsing violence by uniformed officers against the public.

“Where a public officer acts contrary to the provisions of extant laws, there are channels to report such conduct and get prompt justice, particularly in the Nigeria Police Force.

“In the extant case, the individuals resorted to self-help and assaulted the officers, attempted to snatch the officers’ firearm, and in so doing breached the law.

“It is right that two wrongs cannot make a right, as such whatever the provocation, the action of the individuals were wrong,” the FPRO said.

Adejobi said that complaints over unpleasant encounters could be reported via the Police Public Relations Officers of various Commands, Police Complaint Response Unit and official police accounts across social media platforms.

Adejobi said the idea of pouncing on and beating up law enforcement agents on duty was criminal and disrespectful to the nation and so, must not be allowed to continue.

He said that the Nigeria Police had been a vanguard of sustainable democracy in the country via the aggressive protection of the fundamental rights of citizens and other members of the public.

According to him, this has been evident in the continuous sanctions meted out by the Police authority on officers engaged in violation of individual rights, as well as extant laws when reported.