From securing lives to securing money
Nigeria’s security crisis has reached a point where many citizens now feel trapped between two dangers. On one side are bandits and kidnappers who abduct people for ransoms. On the other side are some police officers stationed on our roads, collecting money from struggling motorists and commercial riders as if extortion has become one of their official duties.
It is painful to watch what the security situation in Nigeria has degenerated into. A security force established to protect lives and property is increasingly turning public roads into collection points all across the country. Not long ago, the Lagos State Police Command inaugurated the Command Sweepers Squad for Ikorodu and its environs. During the inauguration, the Commissioner of Police, Tijani Fatai, declared that criminals would not be allowed to rest “until they move out of Ikorodu completely.” He assured residents that the squad would discharge its “duties effectively and diligently”, and instructed officers to work hard to restore peace and harmony to Ikorodu.
Sadly, what many residents are witnessing appears far removed from that mission. Instead of relentlessly pursuing criminals, some of these officers are more focused on pursuing ₦200 from motorists and commercial riders. Rather than ensuring criminals do not rest, it is ordinary road users who are being harassed daily.
From the very first day these officers were deployed around the Igbe Bridge, their primary activity has been collecting ₦200 from motorists and commercial riders. The situation becomes even more disturbing when drivers who refuse to pay are threatened, delayed, or have their vehicles damaged. Whether the vehicle is even carrying criminals or not appears to make no difference. The routine is to just pay ₦200 and pass. No meaningful checks, no serious security screening, and no concern about who is inside the vehicle. Many people have asked, if all motorists and commercial riders pay ₦200 and are allowed to proceed, then what exactly is the purpose of these checkpoints? Is it security or simply revenue collection?
I have personally witnessed numerous instances of these ₦200 collections around Igbe-Laara Bridge every night, and even right in front of the Igbogbo Police Station right from as early as 4a.m. In one instance along the Igbe Bridge, a driver confronted an officer after allegedly paying him and then discovering damage to his vehicle. Other drivers lament that the cumulative effect of these daily collections eventually increases transport costs, forcing operators to transfer the burden to passengers through higher fares.
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Bribery and corruption have become so deeply embedded in our society that many security personnel who are supposed to be keeping the laws and protecting the citizens are now found publicly engaging in bribery and corruption, and are now committed to securing ₦200 rather than securing the safety of the people they swore to serve. And with each passing day, citizens are losing confidence that meaningful change is coming.
The questions now remain: for these officers to be so emboldened to do this in the open, who authorized them to collect money from motorists and commercial riders on the roads? Under what law are these payments being demanded? What exactly is the purpose of collecting ₦200 from citizens trying to make ends meet? Have some officers abandoned their constitutional duty and transformed themselves into unofficial tax collectors?
At a time when Nigerians are battling insecurity, rising costs of living, and economic hardship, the people deserve a police force focused on truly fighting crime, and not one that leaves citizens feeling victimized on the very roads where they should feel protected.
