𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝘁𝘀, 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗜𝗚 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀

Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, has expressed concern over the growing practice of citizens recording police officers with their phones, saying the trend has become “very, very demoralising” for members of the force.

In a video shared by TV Platinum on Wednesday, Disu spoke in Abuja during a meeting with the President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, and members of the NBA executive committee. The meeting was part of efforts to prevent recurring clashes between lawyers and police officers.

The IG said a recent judgment on the recording of police officers had raised concern within the force, noting that citizens had subsequently begun recording officers in different locations.

“The recent judgement on recording of police officers, that one really jolted our officers. And it became something of concern to us because the citizens started coming out with their phones to record police officers everywhere they saw them,” Disu said.

He said the practice had extended beyond police operations in public places, claiming that some people had gone to restaurants to record officers.

“Everywhere you see a police man, start recording a police man. So this is something that was very, very demoralising to us,” the IGP said.

Disu, however, acknowledged that citizens had the right to record police officers performing their duties in public, but urged restraint in how such recordings were made and used.

“We are not saying they cannot exercise their rights of recording officers in the public places while doing their jobs,” he said.

“But they should put restraints and not turn our police officers to content for their skits or anything,” he added. 

The police chief also highlighted the difficult conditions under which officers operate, particularly those deployed to checkpoints and isolated locations.

“If you look at where we have our officers on checking points, there are dangerous areas thick in the forest, thick in the bushes, on the highways, middle of nowhere,” Disu said, adding that officers often remained in such locations “morning and night” to protect the public.Related News

Responding to the concern, Badejo-Okusanya said there was a need to distinguish between legitimate recording of police activities and intrusion into officers’ privacy.

“Policemen sitting down somewhere eating and people are recording them and intruding on their privacy,” she said, stressing the importance of considering the issue from the officers’ perspective.

However, the NBA president said transparency in the lawful execution of police duties should not be undermined.

“We should not be afraid of being transparent in the lawful execution of our duties,” Badejo-Okusanya said.

She cited the introduction of body cameras for police officers in the United States as an example of how recording can promote accountability.

“When the US introduced body cams for police officers, it was in order to promote that so that you yourself, you have a check, you know that whatever you’re doing, you have a body camera that is recording it,” she said.

According to her, such measures could help improve accountability and ensure that officers who engage in misconduct are identified and sanctioned.

Badejo-Okusanya said the solution was not to avoid recording altogether but to establish clearer boundaries around privacy and the lawful recording of police officers.

“We just need to understand the limits,” she said, adding that existing laws could be strengthened or interpreted to prevent abuse of the privilege to record.

She said lawyers and police officers should work together because both were “partners in the same quest to ensure that we have a safe and vibrant society that respects the rule of law.”