The Nigeria Police Force has once again warned officers against arbitrarily checking people’s phones on the road.
This was stated by Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, when he appeared on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme on Tuesday.
“Stop checking phones on the road. You can’t check somebody’s phone. It is his personal property. You cannot do it,” Adejobi said.
He said the Force had put in place measures to ensure that officers don’t continue to violate the rights of citizens in such a manner.
He continued, “In the Police, we have those who are deviants. There is no policeman who doesn’t know that you must not dress improperly, you must not smoke while on duty, you must not slap the Nigerian, you must not use cutlass to flog.
“There is no Nigerian police personnel who will tell me today that they are not aware because, in the training school, it’s part of our manual; they must have taught you all these things.”
Stressing that the police force operates based on laws, the police spokesman said the Force will continue to take necessary disciplinary actions against errant officers.
“So, if a policeman has done something wrong, every offence — disciplinary offence or criminal offence — has its punishment. If it is reduction in rank, we give it to you; if it is dismissal, we give to you; if it is severe reprimand, we give to you…
“But it is clear, how can a policeman stand on the road and be collecting money? It is not a disciplinary offence, it is a criminal offence. Corruption is a criminal offence. If you flog somebody, you assault somebody, it is a criminal offence,” CSP Adejobi opined.