Open letter to Ag IG Ringim.
I am neither a professional Politician nor a favor seeker. I am among the minority of Nigerians who have been forced to turn vocal against past and continued practices of injustice and brutality rained against us by our fellow Nigerians in our God-given land of abundance. Frankly speaking, between me and you, our paths might never cross each other.
First, it is only appropriate that I should congratulate you on your new job as the highest level police officer in the land. Anyone who attains that post in the largest black nation on earth should be congratulated. I must remind you, at the same time, that such an exalted post carries with it immense responsibilities and possible retributive judgment.
Before I proceed further, let me restate my keen judgment that the Nigerian security system is very dysfunctional and unless (and until) that anomaly is rectified, the system cannot function well (please refer to my article: “What State Police?” posted on August 22, 2010 issue of Sahara Reporters). For now (before that rectification), we must work with what we have.
I want to start with some of the issues raised by your “5-point agenda” as reported by some of the Nigerian newspapers.
1. It is said that you will institute ‘zero tolerance to crime and all forms of criminality’
2. It is said that you are committed to the ‘welfare’ of the Police force; that in as much as they do their duties perfectly well, that they will get the best from the government. You would ensure that ‘allowances are paid to officers and men of the force as at when due, and adequate and proper accommodation similar to what is obtained in the army where accommodation is given in line with rank’.
3. It is said that you will engage in ‘intelligence-driven policing, training and re-training, recruitment and robust image’ of the police force.
4. It is said that on the lingering issue of kidnapping, ‘the new police boss will definitely put a stop to it with the full backing of the President, traditional and opinion leaders in Igboland’.
5. It is said that you will ensure that ‘all elements of police brutality and extra-judicial killings are checked, tackling of extortion and bribery with seriousness and adequate punishment of offenders’.
It is also said that you will run an open door policy ‘so that all members of the society with useful information will have easy access to him personally’.
It is always convenient to be politically correct (which is what you are trying to be). With your appointment as the ag IG, you suddenly learnt how to institute ‘zero tolerance to crime and all forms of criminality’ and you suddenly acquired the ability to ‘put a stop’ to ‘the lingering issue of kidnapping’. Were you not the AIG in charge of Zone 9 with headquarters at Umuahia; a State with the most ferocious forms of kidnapping in Nigeria? Some of the highly-placed individuals had even called for the declaration of a State of emergency in Abia State due to its high level of insecurity. You couldn’t stem the rising tide of lawlessness and insecurity in Abia State. Suddenly, you have a magic solution to the chaotic security situation in the entire nation. Whoever gave you that overnight magic potion must be godly indeed. We hope that magic potion performs the promised miracles.
You are committed to the welfare of the police force. You must be so wonderfully different from your predecessors, who commanded a rag-tag police force where low-ranking members were forced to fuel their vehicles, take responsibility for their disability and burial expenses, fight constantly for proper accommodation, and stoop to the level of extortion and harassment of innocent citizens in order to satisfy their monetary daily quotas for their superiors and cater for their own struggling families as well.
I am not trying to give excuses for the horrors perpetuated on innocent citizens by the members of the police force for which there could never be any justification. The point is that any enduring positive changes must start from the top.
Even with the best of intentions, you must be a creature of multiple lives to be able to personally attend to all members of the society with useful information who want direct access to you. Where and how would you find time to address all the emergency situations confronting the nation?
I am not trying to judge and convict you even before your tenure takes off. You might still turn out very different from your predecessors. You might still become the best IG our country has ever had. That remains to be seen. Rather, I have a few suggestions for your consideration.
Before you start buying million-dollar houses all over the world like your predecessor and their likes, remember the saying that “what comes from the edge of the pot ends up on the edge of the mouth”.
Before you start spearheading the rigging of local and national elections on the order of political godfathers and moneybags, remember that when Nigeria begins to burn and disintegrate, there will be no safe place for you to lay your head.
Before you start lending yourself as a tool of oppression and subjugation by rich and powerful politicians and civilians alike, remember that “the same river that gives life to the fish can turn it over to the most vicious of predators”.
Before you start instructing and/or permitting your boys (and girls) to harass, terrorize, intimidate and extort money from exhausted, hard-working and endlessly subjugated common citizens, remember that ‘no condition is permanent’. Today, you may be the perpetrator operating from the safe confines of your abode. Tomorrow, you, your parents, family members, relatives or friends could become the oppressed/victims.
Before you start embezzling money meant for vehicles, equipment, armor and supplies intended for the safety and security of the nation, remember that no one is immune to the evil forces of nature and humanity.
Nobody is perfect and no one expects you to be. However, an ostrich cannot hide by burying its head in the sand. Whatever you do and however you do it, remember that people are watching.
“I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings” (Luke, chapter 16 verse 9). Use your present resources to serve the best interests of your fellow Nigerian citizens so that when your tenure comes to an end, you will have millions of friends on your side. In that case, no matter your condition, you will never lack.
I hereby rest my case.
Dr. Uzoaru is based in New Jersey
USA.
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