AN OPEN LETTER TO THE INSPECTOR-GENERAL OF POLICE, MR. SOLOMON
ARASE.
BY
GREATER VIRTUE FOR TRAFFIC WATCH & DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE.
THE
HUMAN-RIGHTS NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION.
Sir,
WORKING
WITH WISDOM, HONESTY, PATRIOTICISM, HARMONY AND SACRIFICE IN PUBLIC SERVICE
DELIVERY AS TOOLS FOR BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE NATION.
THE
NEED TO CREATE ENABLING ENVIRONMENT FOR THE TRAFFIC WARDEN SERVICE
ESTABLISHMENT.
With due regards I write on behalf of
the Board of Trustees of the above-named Non-Governmental Organization and the
proponent of Traffic Warden Service deserving emancipation; to crave the
indulgence of the Inspector-General of
Police, Mr. Solomon Arase over the need to create an environment of
operation for the Traffic Warden Service (TWS) in the Public Service. No doubt,
it would sound quite unusual for the IGP to receive such an unexpected missive
from an opposing group that is passionate and transparent in her activities;
seeking for national coherence, the way forward and a nation that is
corruption-free and where our collective wealth would be judiciously
coordinated and properly managed, to the advantage of the citizenry.
If that sound palatable then, no
matter how this letter may sound, I pray you to apply leadership, knowledge,
wisdom, honesty, patriotism, harmony and sacrifice and build in you the shocks
to absorb the “fallacy” and/or the “nonsense” that may be suggested here as
what we need as responsible and learned Leaders, if we have to dare discuss and
make input in nation building discourse, bearing in mind that, everyone is
entitled to his/her opinion. It is not
in our character to undermine anyone per se. We respect people as protocol
demands but we would not fail in our duty to point out and expose their
excesses. The truth is bitter.
The
IGP would candidly agree with the superior argument that, there is every need
for the government to create job opening. We also need to collectively
support the government to create the necessary job opportunities within, to
engage our idle and vulnerable youths into something doing and focused; to curb
waste talent, hunger, restiveness, crime and frustration, rather than take
solace in running after them when they take to criminality to satisfy their
needs. ‘A
stitch in time saves nine’. Nigeria
Police cannot tell us they are not aware of the challenges of unemployment in
the society and the plight Nigerians are passing through. It is rather shameful
and discourteous for the Police to continue making herself an anti-development propagandist
and a stumbling block opposing government plans to create jobs through the
Traffic Warden Service and, the nation’s road traffic subsector, owing to
Police selfish interest and glutinous greed. It is very unfortunate
that, in Nigeria, we have always failed to nib our problems at the bud stage.
Later when the problem escalates, growing branches, it is then we run helter-skelter
searching for solutions that are rather belated. Medicine after death.
Our believe is that, the incumbent
IGP, Mr. Solomon Arase is a salient man of letters, a listening leader and from
that background we have noticed with a sense of humour, the man in Mr. Solomon
Arase. Perhaps if not for the pressure that do come from other Members of
Nigeria Police hierarchy, with myopic views, the incumbent IGP is set to
effectively reform and change the Nigeria Police to a world-class security
Agency.
Nevertheless, we implore IGP Solomon
Arase having displayed the qualities of a responsible, humourous and wonderful
Leader, we earnestly feel, there is one issue that remained controversial and
unsettled. It is the question of the
Traffic Warden Service (an Establishment under an Establishment) and,
the Traffic Wardens that the Nigeria
Police have inexplicably remained resolute and indifference about, not willing
to do justice to these set of Public Servants. What is their crime and is
it the place of Nigeria Police to unilaterally take decisions affecting Traffic
Wardens without the knowledge of the Federal government? Recognizing the
realities that, Traffic Wardens are Federal Government Employees and NOT
Nigeria Police Employees.
We have to draw the attention of IGP
Solomon Arase as the Police Boss, to emulate the exemplary humility of the
former President of South Africa, Mr.
Fredrick De’Clerk. In-spite of what the Whites were gaining, the exalted
positions the Whites were occupying and enjoying in South Africa then and what
they were going to lose, President Fredrick De’Clerk bowed to majority opinion,
to free late Dr. Nelson Mandela,
against all odds. He sacrificed. Mr. Fredrick De’Clerk later accepted to hold
the Office of the Vice President, with Dr. Nelson Mandela as President of South
Africa. Such was a clear demonstration of sacrifice, humility, coherence,
honesty, education and tolerance in display. That singular movement finally
dismantled racism and apartheid experience in that land. Back home, our own former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan
GCFR, at the last count of votes cast in 2015 Presidential election, Dr.
Goodluck Jonathan had whatever power he needed as the President and
Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the nation that moment, to cancel
that unfavourable election, but he gave it a second thought against all odds,
to allow Nigeria to move forward. He sacrificed. He made history to himself.
IGP Solomon Arase, no matter Billions
the Police have been garnering and gaining from the road traffic subsector to
themselves, we urge you to create that exemplary action, like Mr. Fredrick
De’Clerk, like Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, to soft-pedal and allow the right
thing to be done on the Traffic Warden Service; to enable government create mass employment for our vulnerable
youths through the Traffic Warden Service. Create history and good image
for yourself.
It is very unfortunate that, Nigeria
parades a lot of people who claimed to have been to or acquired all manner of
Certificates that portrays them as highly educated personalities. But by the
time one take a cursory observation at the way these persons reasons, make
input, their reactions and response to issues and policies, you discover that
they lack common knowledge or vision. The man who ordinarily never got nearer
to a school all his life tend to reason far better at his level than those
claiming to have acquired all strata of qualifications. IGP Solomon Arase, you are surrounded by such unrefined/retarded minds.
Most Police Officers have by their overweening and subconscious characters
painted the Nigeria Police black and presented the Police in bad light that
cannot be over-emphasized. Don’t let them push you. Use your discretion as a
learned fellow on Traffic Warden Service matter now at the National Assembly. It is a delicate matter.
This peculiar NGO had been around the Traffic
Wardens for quite a long time, studying the whole situation and Traffic
Wardens’ unfortunate predicament under the Nigeria Police unilateral House of
bondage. We discovered that, the Police are heartless, myopic, greedy,
desperate and self-destructive. The Police have no fear of God at the back of
their minds. The Police are inhuman.
From
the compendium of our study and observations, we have a lot of substantiated
evidence to nail the Nigeria Police both on Police involvement in massive
corruption, duping the nation of accruable revenue, economic sabotage,
rebellion, contemptuous insubordination, lawlessness and contending power with
constituted authority and, Police unilateral human-rights abuse, oppression,
severe victimization and humiliation,
casusalization, promotion of inequality, segregation and undue marginalization
against Traffic Wardens and the unwarranted relegation of Traffic Wardens to
the background without any form of development; stagnation, slow promotion;
Warden Officers are not given Appointment and Office. The Police discourteous
blocking of every available opportunity opens for Traffic Wardens to enhance
their potentials in the Police institution particularly and the Public Service
in general. Why? Are such Police unilateral,
intractable and illegal actions fair? OUTRIGHTLY
CHEATING ON TRAFFIC WARDENS. Such is quite outrageous and uncalled for if
most Members of Nigeria Police were to really understand the rudiments of
education, human development and co-existence.
We
think the Police don’t have such right whatsoever unilaterally maltreating
and/or subjecting Traffic Wardens to suffer such irreparable damages and
irretrievable losses in their career and in the Public Service. Such Police improprieties
against Traffic Wardens are illegal and unfair in its entire ramification. These
matters are already in public domain.
Agree that, the Police want to remain
part of the road traffic subsector, such could have been done with caution and
diplomacy, by carefully carrying Traffic Wardens along, give them a place and
create equal opportunity, create a level playing ground for both Personnel to
compete and by today we wouldn’t be talking about de-merge or separation. Inversely, the Police rather applied
highhandedness, winners-take-all attitude, pride, arrogance, nonchalant
attitude and pretention to jettison the Wardens; to register Police disapproval
of the Traffic Warden Service establishment. The Police were from the
beginning not comfortable with the establishment of the Traffic Warden Service.
The Police saw Traffic Wardens as perceive threat, coming to take-over “their
job” on the road. That was why the Police did the manipulations to have Traffic
Wardens conscripted under the Police, to allow the Police to remain on the road
traffic function and continue what they know how to do best, EXTORTION. The Nigeria Police
no longer have absolute right over the road traffic control.
It is no longer a secret that, Traffic
Wardens are the Custodians of the road traffic control function. The Traffic
Warden Service was created for that purpose. The Police merely influenced and
made the Traffic Warden Service and her Personnel to be unconscionably conscripted
to come under the Police, owing to Police vested interest and what they have
been gaining to themselves from the road.
Conscripting
Traffic Wardens under the Nigeria Police was NOT the original purpose for which
the Traffic Warden Service was established. The Police quite knew that,
the Traffic Warden Service is NOT an establishment of Nigeria Police. The Police made Wardens victims of
circumstances, because there had been no proper supervision on Nigeria Police
activities. We cannot in anyway
compare the establishment of the Traffic Warden Service with that of Spy and
Superneumary Police that are well cared for in the Police institution.
‘Those
who come to equity must come with clean hands’. If there is no hidden agenda the
Police are nursing against Traffic Wardens, why would the Police rather regard,
prefer and value untrained State Traffic Management Agencies than the
Traffic Warden Service? It is glaring that the Police extremely
dislike Traffic Wardens. It is also
glaring that, the Police neglects, abandon, shows no commitment but exhibits
laxity on the road traffic function. The Police are not interested in doing
the practical job of traffic control in the States of the federation accept in
the FCT. The Police failed to come out and tell the Federal Government
that the Police are unable to cope with the job of road traffic control
function but hypocritically allowed the State Governments the leverage to
set-up untrained traffic Agencies to take-over the function. While the Police
pretend to play the Supervisory role to these States traffic Agencies.
The Police equally deprived, disallowed,
blocked and/or refused to groom or give Traffic Wardens the same leverage to
properly handle the road traffic function that they are recruited and trained
to perform for the nation. The roads are
constantly in chaotic traffic gridlocks, blocked and short of well-trained
Traffic Control Personnel to manage the situations. The Police, in their hidden
agenda deliberately failed to recruit enough Traffic Wardens to do the job. For
God’s sake, What are the Police insinuating? Where is the place of Traffic Wardens in the Public Service?
Nigerians are not blind to such conspicuous Police unilateral actions. Such is rebellion and sabotage. The Police are not above criticism.
What is bad is bad. The matter would be
thrown to public debate. The Police cannot be forcing themselves on a function
that they have demonstrated shoddiness, laxity, lack of commitment and failed
abysmally.
After
inflicting such terrible and indelible damages in the career of Traffic
Wardens; created an incompatible working relationship with Traffic Wardens, the
Police are brazenly asking the National Assembly to allow them continue to
retain Traffic Wardens. The Police want Nigerians to believe that, there are no
elements of sabotage and hypocritical connotation in such Police unprincipled inactions.
Such cannot be accepted.
It
has to be made abundantly clear here that, Police agitations to retain Traffic
Wardens and the road traffic function is mere pretence, deceit, frivolous,
hypocritical, unfounded and of no effect. The Police have nothing to offer Traffic Wardens and/or the
road traffic subsector. The Police caused Traffic Wardens to lose their
respect, dignity and pride. The Police agenda is to unilaterally fizzle
out the Traffic Warden Service, mess-up the function, while she continues to silently
perpetrate her Personnel on illegal extortion tendency on the road.
What the Police are garnering and sharing amongst themselves from the road has made the Police to misplace their
sense of moral judgment. Such fraudulent and illegal extortion can no
longer be condoned. The Federal Government is set to recover and effectively
coordinate the Goldmine that the
Police have been digging illegally from the road traffic subsector to
themselves, remitting nothing into Government Coffers, for over four decades. That should serve as a warning to Nigeria
Police. We all have to learn to do what is right and just too
to all concern in the country and assist the government to fight such glaring
conspiracy and endemic corruption. The
Nigeria Police has to be compelled to obey laws and made to come off such supercilious
lawlessness, indiscipline and unilateral obduracy. This is democracy.
Some Nigerians cannot be treated like plebeians in the society. We cannot
imagine Traffic Wardens being treated as foreigners or as Outcasts.
It is very unfortunate that, it is at
your tenure as the IGP that the question of separating the Traffic Warden
Service from Nigeria Police is coming-up in the National Assembly. The
Police have no choice. Nothing last forever. Whatever has a
beginning certainly must have an end. The
struggle to make Nigeria a strong, virile, viable and an enviable socio-economy
is a synergy, a collective collaboration of the various subsectors certainly
beyond the Police Organization alone.
The
Road Traffic Control Function is sprawling, demanding and specialized function,
a Goldmine that requires to be given scientific conscious attention it deserves
in the scheme of things. The function should no longer be allowed to be
stage-managed or shared by two separate Establishments. The Traffic Warden
Service is the rightful Agency established to handle the intra-city Road
Traffic Control Function, as her primary function. The Police should focus
her manpower in Crime Prevention, Security of Lives and Properties and
Prosecution that is also a demanding function. No criss-crossing. Every
Establishment to her function, to promote division of labour, specialization
and professionalism in the nation’s Paramilitary Organizations.
We want to use this medium to advice
IGP Solomon Arase to humbly withdraw his men from the road traffic control
function upon the passage of the popular Traffic Warden Service Bill as an Act
of the National Assembly. No confrontations. Allow sleeping dogs to lie quietly.
There is no point contesting the Bill. This is because, when the Police insist
on such frivolous and unfounded agitations to retain Traffic Wardens or the
road traffic function, the NGO has a lot of substantiated evidence that are
beyond the Committee. We may not wish the authority to wade the axe of
anti-corruption on the Police and/or on the incumbent IGP. Invariably, time has
come for Nigeria Police to quietly resolve her House and pull out of the issue
of the Traffic Warden Service de-merge with the National Assembly. It is a delicate and a bitter pill for Nigeria Police especially in
the era of President Mohammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption crusade and the CHANGE
mantra. The law is no respecter of anyone. The Police are not above the law or above criticism. We would not
want the Nigeria Police to be messed up. The Police should respect her
institution, accept defeat and take heart. The
Traffic Warden Service Bill is about public interest. Public interest
overrides individual, personal, IGP’s and Police interest.
We would also want the Police to
realize that, the Traffic Warden Service is now an autonomous Paramilitary
Organization already (ref: The Court of
Appeal judgment. CA/K/112/99) of the year 2000. Hence the Police failed to
challenge the Court of Appeal judgment at the Supreme Court within the time
allowed. There is nothing anyone can do to change that judgment.
Influencing anyone with monetary inducement to drop the Bill is a sheer waste
of tax-payers’ money. Such cannot help the Police this time around. Police Lawyers should know better. The
whole world must hear such Nigeria Police unilateral rebellion on the nation’s
economy and human-rights abuse and social injustice done to Traffic Wardens.
The Police cup is full. That judgment has to be enforced. The rule of law must take its course. It may be a hard decision for Nigeria Police to take but certainly it
is the wisest decision to take at this point. The hard way is the only way.
The NGO is not out to fight Nigeria
Police per se. Our mission is to correct the social ills; the fraudulence and the
deception practiced by Nigeria Police on the road; depriving and duping government
of accruable revenue and our collective wealth all this while, that is
detrimental to the nation’s economy; correct the inequality, apartheid and the
social injustice discovered and persistently practiced within the Police
institution, that is obviously inimical and totally against the norms of human fairness,
as meted out to Traffic Wardens in the Police institution. Behaviours that violates individual freedom, behaviours that
oppresses and erode the rights of persons and against international
human-rights standard. The
Police should be grateful to the NGO for thinking for her. It is the
responsibility of the Police to advice the three tiers of government to always
create opportunity for job creation, to get our hungry youths engaged into
something doing, to disabuse their minds from criminality. Idle hands are the
devil’s workshop’. The NGO thus need the warm support and cooperation of
Nigeria Police, to achieve these objectives and make the Public Service a
conducive working environment for all, where no one is oppressed. The country
belongs to all of us as true Nigerians. The
Traffic Warden Service has come to stay.
God Bless you, Mr. Solomon Arase, IGP.
Signed: JK. Johnsonapla Esq
for and on behalf of the NGO
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