“If I won collect money I Dey collect better money no be small change I Dey collect. IG sef know. My former commander even tell me say if I won collect bribe make I collect big money so that I fit share with am from inside. I no Dey hide am”.
These words are from a police officer, Inspector Richard Gele (dismissed now) while he was extorting money from road users.
Bribery and corruption in the Nigerian police force have gotten to the extent that a policeman can openly boast that he does not collect “change” or small amounts from motorists if he wants to extort them. He claims he always makes sure he collects a huge amount from motorists so that after splitting it with other officers on duty he will have some reasonable amount left for him.
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Nigerians keep complaining about police brutality, police extortion, bribery, and corruption amongst other ill vices amongst the Nigerian police force but it seems like the Nigerian police force is rooted deep down in evil.
This as shocking as it appears is not even a fairy tale, it happened, it’s happening and it happens on daily bases. This policeman by the name; Inspector Richard Gele was just unfortunate that he was caught on camera making this boast with so much impunity and arrogance while extorting and harassing his victims.
Every day we read stories and witness by ourselves how police officers manning different checkpoints end up extorting and harassing motorists at gunpoint for no just cause. Police officers are placed along highways and some strategic locations for the safety and security of motorists and road users but the police officers would rather abandon their duty of provision of security to be tasking and extorting road users.
For the record, a police officer or whomsoever has no authority to collect a dime from anybody or ask anybody for a dime. Any police officer that asks you for money is a criminal or better still, an armed robber. That money he collected is a bribe and you, the giver of the money, is also a party to bribery and you are an enabler of corruption.
Motorists should start standing their ground and learn to start saying no whenever a police officer asks for money from them. If you as a motorist wants to encourage a police officer by giving that officer a gift; a monetary gift or in kind, let it be that you are doing that out of your own free will and volition and not because that police officer held you at gunpoint that is you don’t “Roger” you won’t leave.
It is so pathetic that it has gotten to the level that if you are traveling by road you will see drivers splitting money into smaller currencies that they will be sharing along the road with police officers. I quizzed one of the drivers one time as to why they must share money amongst officers at every checkpoint along the road and he said if any driver dare not drop money for the police officers, the police officers won’t let that vehicle drive past that checkpoint or they will end up delaying you.
It’s more like a norm now in Nigeria that if you are traveling by road you must have money for police officers, if you don’t give them money they will detain you. The police service commission and the Inspector General of police really need to wake up and do a thorough work of purging the Nigeria police force of the crooks and the bad eggs before they drag the whole force into the gutter!