My many experiences with the men in black have been bitter and most if not all have left me feeling very ANGRY and helpless.
These officers who are supposed to help and prevent have been known most times to be the effective barriers to any lawfullness. Also instead of preventive measures to prevent law breaking are more intent on allowing the law to be broken and then they step in with remedies that will increase their take home pay for the day.
I wont go into the numerous stories i’ve heard or encountered but one I heard must not go UNSAID!
Actually it happened to my little brother. I had been expecting him at my office yesterday to pick up something and after haven waited in vain, I called to find out where he was.
He sounded too mellow and instantly I knew something had gone wrong. On his way out of the house before getting to the bus stop to board a bus, a throng of men-in-black with a ‘captured’ danfo stopped beside him and arrested him. On what charges? For not being able to show his ID card.
When I asked him why he had gone out without one (as if thats an offence?) he said it didnt even matter if he had one. Whether you had one or not, the police were not interested. All they wanted was some extra cash to cart home. There and then instead of the unpleasant task of having to board the danfo to who knows which horrible cell on trumped up charges (from loitering to armed robbery), he doled out N1,000 to set himself free and of course headed back home immediately.
My dear brother is a 2nd year undergraduate Law student and it must have taken a lot not to act out his ‘calling’ on these thieves-in-black. It sounds cowardly but it is actually wise to just play along with them cos I just can not imagine my dear brother locked in a police cell for doing nothing.
Speaking with my mum later in the evening showed that she was clearly upset about what had happened. I told her to thank God his was not a case of a ‘missing’ person. Stories abound of others unable to pay the ‘required’ sum to be set free spending days and even weeks in captivity.
Later on thinking about it, I wondered what can we do about this? Sue the police? (any witnesses willing to witness?), campaign about such meaningless arrests? What exactly can be done that will prove effective?
08/05/2007 at 3:21 pm Permalink
The state of the police force is merely a reflection of our macro society… until the society itself is “resurrected”, we may have to remain “helpless”. What can we do turn our society around? That’s a question that has been asked a million times over… But it has to happen sooner or later, evolution must take it’s course, one way or the other.
08/05/2007 at 6:54 pm Permalink
HMM TThank God for small mercies, my experience with policemen is better left unsaid and to think that this same young man when he was smaller used to have such regard for these men in black standing at attention on the back seat of the car whenever we happened to pass them and not sitting down till we were out of sight(lol)
I wonder what he thinks of them now.
23/05/2007 at 3:53 pm Permalink
Hi Lamikay,
I’ve had my own share of experiences with the police and so have so many people i know. I have vexed so much that i’ve become indifferent.
Worry not, with Ribadu in the line as the next IG, the police is in for a great purging experience. May it be so. Somebody say………!