At a time when sundry police professionals are fighting to enhance efficiency and productivity towards boosting the image of the force, a few of them are wallowing in dishonourable, descendancy by promoting negative attitudes in the workplace, situation which places hurdles on the pathway to building an enviable Nigeria Police.
This one’s are officers who put up delusive fronts as facades before the authorities who ignorantly entrust them with the leadership of some police platform or division where they eventually unleash their ill identities. And more often than not, their activities as helmsmen bring shame to the authorities rather than fame.
The developments at the Isheri Osun division presently are scenarios that are in tandem with the above as the man at the helms of affairs as Divisional police officer (DPO), CSP CHIKE IBE has become a source of pain to all, due to his inglorious conducts. In this division, Chike is known as a brute, not just by civilians who come there for different reasons, but also by serving policemen who severally allege that their boss (DPO)is a slavemaster who saddles them indiscriminately with duties that stretches beyond normal police schedules.
Many of them have found their ways to other divisions, and those who remain serve unpatriotically under compulsion or as mere stooges who help to sustain his regime of untowardness.
The near and remote implication of this phenomenon is that true efficiency that yields commendable safety and security dividends for the state, and which auguments the good name of the police is affected. All these disorderly and illicit dimensions can even cause a re-occurence of the ugly saga caused by an over zealous policeman in this division who, not too long ago, shot and killed an innocent woman to create the greatest administrative headache ever faced by the then CP OWOSENI FATAI (NOW RETIRED).
Unconfirmed sources have it that ‘BOSS’ CSP Chike would force suspects to cough out huge sums of money for bail, no matter whose ox is gored. His impunity, imprudence and impudence across board stands him out as one man exploring the instrumentality of the Nigeria police force to exploit, to the point that many a citizen now wonder if those who placed him there have lost control over him. CSP Chike told one of our correspondents that they are given target (returns) by the authorities. The situation becomes worse with the existence of a woman DSP Agatha Eze, who was recently lampooned across the social media as a very corrupt and exploitative officer, as the Divisional Crime Officer (DCO), a situation which renders Isheri Osun division quite unsafe and unproductive as far as policing is concerned.
Still on the ‘peculiarity’ of this great division under the watch of this CSP who is supposed to be maximal in productivity, it was gathered that the Covid-19 pandemic and the various government policies provided CSP Chike Ibe the opportunity for brisk business. As a matter of reality, many lagosians have lamented how this DPO demands huge amounts of money to let suspects off the hook. Only recently CSP Chike Ibe exploring the lockdown laws, bursted into a popular hotel (Spot One) in Bucknor area of Igando/Ikotun LCDA, and arrested all the people there. After detaining them, it was learnt that the wife of the owner of the hotel was one of them, the husband came later to look for His wife, and CSP Chike detained both of them. He sent one of his police men to negotiate the bail with the lawyer of the suspects which amounted to one million naira bail. But when a media man arrived the station amid the negotiation, he intervened and the DPO lowered his sledgehammer by asking the media man to liaise with them and reduced it #100,000 (hundred thousand), the amount he (CSP Chike) referred to as ‘kola’ money since the man (hotel owner) has refused to settle him for over one year.
When the money was given to him, CSP Chike left the office, taking the money with him. He later said that all the suspects (about 50 of them) must pay #20,000 each for bail or be transferred to Panti or SARS office. CSP Chike created a situation of confusion between the media man who mediated for them and family members of the suspects who almost lynched him (the media man).
It was learnt that the DCO Agartha Eze came to the rescue of the media man by telling the family that he is innocent, that the DPO is with the money at about 10:30pm.
The hotel owner, his wife (who was in her period and had a little baby at home) and 5 staff were detained for 3 days before the bail of N140, 000 was paid for their release (all together, N220, 000). The other suspects (who were arrested at the bar) bailed themselves out with N20,000 each too!
It was the CP and DCP OPS Lagos State command, with the wisdom from God that later resolved the imbroglio that ensued after the media man took the matter there, through a petition.
It has also been discovered that many officers have spent more than 10/12years in this division without having been transferred, some of them have become informants to criminals in the area too.
Judging by the antecedents of this special DPO and this particular division, there is need therefore for the police authorities to adopt greater parameters as basis for selecting those who will occupy the various positions. A mechanism that will promptly detect officers placed for great responsibilities who are misbehaving should also be ensured so that nobody will cash in on any loophole to drag the name of the force in the mud.
By: Prince Chukwudi Samuel
