Nigerian police force is an establishment of Nigerian
constitution. This can be located in section 214 of the 1999 constitution as
amended. The powers of the police force
in Nigeria is contained in the Nigeria police Act. We shall examine the functions or roles of
police force in combating or fighting crimes in Nigeria according to section 23
of the police Act.
- Power to arrest an offender /offenders
- Power to detect crime
- Power to prevent the commission of an offense etc.
The power to arrest has gone beyond reasonable doubt among other roles being played by the police force in Nigeria. In a catch-all, it can be seen in the case of robbery incident. In the case of Emmanuel Ekpulor V. State the appellant was among a gang of armed robbers that entered by force into the premises of a fishery company in Port Harcourt. Even the security men were underrated soon information got to the police who immediately converged on the premises.
Both the police and the armed
robbers exchanged gun short, many of the armed robbers escape except one who
was wounded by the gun short. The
appellant made a confessional statement on how they prepared but however denied
being among since according to him he
was at the gate while other gained entry. The trial court convicted him of the
armed robbery. The court of appeal as well as the Supreme Court affirmed his
conviction
It is important also to know that police has power to prosecute but their prosecution ends in the lower courts. From what we have learnt so far, police force has done a great job in Nigerian society. They are the instruments of fighting crimes in Nigeria
In conclusion, it is my submission that the Nigerian Police Force has done good to Nigeria society at large and should be more equipped to ensure their good work.