NBA decries high service charges by police personnel in Enugu

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) says it will take necessary action to check the alleged extortions of citizens by some police personnel in Enugu State which infringe on their fundamental human rights.

The NBA Enugu Branch made the vow on Tuesday in Enugu during the opening of the NBA Enugu Branch 2024 Law Week.

They were reacting to a lecture delivered by a human rights lawyer, Mr Daniel Ogbe, entitled, “Commercialisation of Policing in Enugu State: Implications on Human Rights”.

The Chairman of NBA, Enugu Branch, Chief Venatus Odo noted that the recent extortions take place at their various police offices in the state when residents sought for their services.

Odo said that these negative actions of some police officers should be checked, and fundamental human rights of residents restored.

The chairman also said that the development infringed on activities of lawyers and the general judicial process in the state.

“We are going to seek an official audience with the police authority and its hierarchy within the state on this negative development even as we are going to submit our week communiqué to them,” he said.

Odo lamented the high charges by police personnel when matters were reported to their offices within the state.

Ogbe, in his presentation, said that the commercialisation of policing in Enugu State had led to infringement on fundamental human rights of residents, who at times paid exorbitantly to get police services.

“The commercialisation of the Nigeria Police Force in Enugu State represents a significant threat to societal stability and poses a detrimental impact on the welfare of the police themselves.

“It is imperative that legal professionals collaborate to initiate Public Interest Suits.

“These suits should aim to persuade the judiciary, through compelling legal arguments, to adopt a proactive stance in interpreting pertinent laws.

“This approach should ensure that police officers are neither permitted nor incentivised to act as agents of injustice and regression within the Criminal Justice System.

“Such actions have negative implications for the protection of fundamental rights of Nigerian citizens in Enugu State,” he said.

Ogbe noted that notwithstanding the difficulties and inadequacies in police operations, the police should work with some levels of dedication and commitment to serve the public.

Reacting, another legal luminary, Chief Uche Maduemesi, noted that the cost of getting police to make an arrest had gone beyond the normal.

Maduemesi said that police officers did not consider that ordinary citizens might not access protection and emergency response services due to excessive charges before service.

“There is a need to have a change and for Nigerians to easily access the services of the Nigeria police to ensure that people get needed help from distresses,” he said.

Earlier, Justice Peter Obiora, Justice of the Court of Appeal, Abuja, in a keynote paper on the theme: “Bar Practice: The Lawyer at the Centre of Judicial Corruption – Nagging Need for Practice Reforms”, noted that lawyers must live upright.

Obiora, represented by Justice Harold Eya of Enugu State High Court, explained that there were two types of lawyers namely “those who know the law and those who know the judge”.

“Truth and transparency is the hallmark of justice anywhere you take it to,” he said.

He called on lawyers to desist from encouraging bribery and corruption in the judicial system, adding that lawyers should shun double standard but maintain only the rule of law and truth.

Speaking, Justice Elvis Ngene, the Chief Judge of Ebonyi State, lauded the NBA Enugu Branch for organising the week and standing out among other bar associations in the country.

“I have been enriched today by this lecture by Justice Peter Obiora and I am leaving here happy and fulfilled. This shows that there is still much hope for reform in the judicial system in the country,” Ngene said.

In his remarks, Justice Raymond Ozoemena, Chief Judge of Enugu State, lauded NBA Enugu Branch for upholding the tenets of the legal profession and having due mentoring initiatives to bring up young lawyers.

“I want to commend the NBA Enugu Branch for setting the pace and being outstanding in all it set out to achieve within the state and nationally,” Ozoemena said.