Police Infringement on Human Rights: A Myth or Reality in Contemporary Nigeria

Abstract

Contemporary Nigerian societies without doubt are threatened by waves of uncertainty, galvanised by terrorism, cries for secession, political violence and religious conflicts. All these indicators points towards one direction, the need for efficient policing that will effectively bridge the gap between the public and constituted authorities and equally among people. This tall task may not come to fruition if the police in contemporary Nigeria symbolises terror by infringing on the human rights they were established to preserve. To illuminate this doubt, the study seeks answers to the following questions: are human rights infringed upon in recent times by the police? What human rights are mostly violated? And, what is the relationship between socio-demographic characteristics of Nigerians and police infringement of rights today. In addition, two hypotheses were tested: 1. Rural settlers are more likely to experience police infringement of their rights than urban settlers. 2. The lower the level of educational attainment the more likely it is for one to become a victim of police misconduct. The study adopted a cross sectional survey research design and accidental sampling technique. Enlightening the public on their right, policing the police and localised policing were recommended as possible remedies to police infringement of human rights.

Keywords: Police, Infringement, Human Rights, Contemporary, Myth, Reality.