Policemen: Our agony in enforcing COVID-19 lockdown

Juliana Francis

As COVID-19 continues to ravage the American Police departments, the Nigerian Police Force appears to be handling the issue of the safety of its personnel with levity.

As at April 1, it was alleged that approximately 17 percent of uniformed New York City Police Department (NYPD) were sick, while 1,400 others have tested positive for the virus.

According to the economictimes.com, at least 95 Chinese Police officers died in the fight against COVID-19.

Most countries provided their policemen with face masks and gloves and infrared thermometers, otherwise called Thermometer Guns, to screen people for the illness. It can quickly measure surface temperature without making contact with a person’s body.

In Italy, the police are allowed to use drones to monitor and ensure lockdown and ensure social distancing between the Police and the people.

Recently a rumour engulfed the social media, that a Mobile Police officer, attached to a VIP, contracted the virus and passed it onto his family of six. Although the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Bala Elkana, insisted it was a fake story, it however sharply brought home the risky situation policemen and their families face in this fight against the virus.

The Nigeria Police is not taking a cue or learning a lesson from other countries, which forces are being ravaged by COVID-19. Every day a policeman leaves home for his duty post of enforcing the lockdown, he’s walking into a high risk situation of contracting the virus, and when he returns home, he is in all probability bringing the virus home.

In Nigeria, it is business as usual following federal government directives that the military, police and other paramilitary personnel should ensure citizens’ compliance with the stay at home in Lagos, Ogun and Abuja. These are states mostly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria. Indeed, while a good number of countries supplied their police with face masks, gloves and infrared thermometers, the Nigerian Policemen were thrown into the streets to drown or survive the virus.

Many of these policemen are not happy with this set up. They are worried about contracting the virus from the streets to their wives and children at home.

In Lagos State Police Command, the policemen disclosed that during briefing of junior officers by their superiors, they continued to be on parade, brutally violating the social distancing rule.

These policemen, who spoke with the New Telegraph, wish to remain anonymous as they were not authorised or in any position to speak with the journalist. But they also needed to express their fears.

One of them said: “We’re not even observing social distancing at Lagos State Police Command. Every day, we gather together for briefing. We have complained about not maintaining social distancing, but nobody listens to us. The only things provided for us are water and soap to wash our hands. Mostly water, because the soap used to get finish. Most of us bought our own hand sanitisers and go about with it while attempting to enforce the lockdown.”

Many of them also complained of trekking to their various duty posts due to lack of commercial transportation caused by the lockdown.

 “Policemen and women are the ones feeling the brute of the lockdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said another police officer. “We work without food from morning till night. There’s nowhere we can get food and because of unavailability of transportation, some of us are forced to spend three days at our duty posts. It’s only God that is protecting us. We check identity cards every day without gloves and we don’t know if the owner of the ID card is a carrier. We impound vehicles of those that violate the lockdown directives, but we don’t know if the owners of such vehicles are carriers. We’re at risk every day.”

They also alleged that even some policemen, who had fallen sick, had never been tested to know if the condition could be as a result of contracting the virus.

A senior officer, while reacting to the present danger faced by policemen, queried: “Have you ever seen our policemen with any kit? This is Nigeria! Has anything about policemen in this country ever been taken seriously?”

An Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), said: “Policemen are taught to wash their hands, keep social distancing, reduce unwanted visitors in the stations, but nothing else had been done for them. No logistics, no sanitisers, no gloves, no soaps or face masks were provided for us. But we’re not ready to make avoidable mistakes. We are making all necessary logistics available to protect us and our families while we perform our duties. The Police have been heroic even though unsung.”

A Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) described the situation thus, “We’ve been saddled with a responsibility and we must do it. However, I expected the authority to at least provide face masks and sanitizers. There is also the serious issue of lack of transportation for officers to report to their duty posts.”

In Ogun State Police Command, the story is the same. While expressing worries over their wives and children since the virus is asymptomatic, the policemen insisted that it wouldn’t be a bad idea for the government to give them hazard allowances.

A Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) said: “The sad stories of policemen are the same everywhere. Policemen are compelled to buy sanitisers and hand washing materials at every police station without anyone making provisions towards getting the items. People actually think and believe that the average policeman has two lives.”

He further opined: “The number one thing the government needs to provide for policemen is kit. Security agents are the first line of defence. In other climes, policemen who are on patrol are issued with mobile test instruments. It should be made available at every police station and army formation to screen whoever is coming into their facilities. Policemen and army should be supplied with face masks, gloves and the stations should be regularly fumigated.”

A policeman complained: “We’re the ones suffering as if we are slaves. We don’t go home, there’s no happiness, there’s no allowance and nobody loves us. We’re the most vulnerable.”

Another policeman supported: “Our government is not being fair to uniform men and women with reference to COVID-19 exercise. I’m yet to see the standard provision put in place in terms of protection and welfares. In USA, more than 150 security personnel have contracted the virus despite arrangements put in place for them. In fact, gloves, sanitizers, drugs, face masks and other electronic gadgets are supplied to each policeman yet they are still victims of the virus, let alone policemen here on duty. Do you know that a policeman may not be able to maintain a good social distance when on duty? You can't give a suspect too much gap or he may escape. Policemen interaction with motorists is also a source of concern. It is very difficult to take a statement from a suspect and maintain a good social distancing. An infected policeman may pass it round to all personnel at a division.”

In Anambra State Police Command, the story seems to be different. This is due to the fact that the Command and its men have only been saddled with ensuring citizens observe simple rules of social distancing. The state is not on complete lockdown.

However, a few weeks ago, the Anambra State Command, under the leadership of John Abang, ensured that the temperatures of most of his policemen were checked, which is the first test in screening for COVID-19.

The Anambra State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), a Superintendent of Police (SP), Haruna Mohammed, who said that the Command was proactive, explained that the temperature test was carried out for all policemen and women attached to the command.

He added: “Yes, the temperature test was done for everyone in our Command. Just like our CP, all policemen sent out for the enforcement of social distancing and ensuring numbers of passengers in buses and tricycles were given face masks, gloves and sanitisers.”

The Force spokesman, Frank Mba, while reacting to questions on how policemen and their family members would be protected against the virus, said: “The Police, just like other agencies have to do its work. The pandemic came unannounced and it was not something we planned or budgeted for, but we’re working towards securing our men.”

He further added: “On a normal day, no Police Chief, while planning annual budget for the Police, will plan for equipment to fight COVID19. He will, rather, be looking at Police equipment, jackets and forensic equipment. Nobody budgeted for COVID-19. We didn’t anticipate for it. We’re now working to meet up. We’ve restricted movement in Police stations and decongested our cells. We just took delivery from a foundation of medical equipment, which we are going to distribute to our policemen. We’re all struggling with this virus; Europe and other countries are struggling with this virus and how to protect their personnel. I just spoke with a police colleague in US; he told me that over 200 policemen tested positive to COVID-19. As big as these countries are, they are struggling. Unfortunately as policemen, we can’t stay at home and COVID-19 has increased our occupational hazards and risks as law enforcement officers. As Policemen, our jobs had always been risky, but today, COVID-19 has added additional risk to that risk.”

The Executive Director, International Human Rights and Equity Defence Foundation, Justus Ijeomah, a lawyer based in Anambra State, said: “In fairness to the Police in Anambra State, there has not been strict enforcement of lockdown by the police in the State to the extent of employing brutality. This could be attributable to the fact that there is actually no total lockdown in Anambra State.”

Ijeomah added: “What was announced by the State Government was a restriction of movement to some extent, and later on closure of markets in the state. Civil servants are to work from home but any one of them whose attention is needed could be called upon to come to the office. These and other measures put in place, according to the government, were to ensure that the dreaded COVID-19 is not spread in the state. There has not been, to my knowledge, any report of misconduct by the police in the course of enforcing restrictions.”

The Executive Director of Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), Mr Okechukwu Nwanguma said: “I have read several of the statements and updates issued by the Force PRO and Lagos State Police PRO giving directives to police officers on modalities for the enforcement of the state and federal governments' directives ordering lockdown of the FCT, Abuja, Lagos and Ogun states as part of measures put in place to curtail the further spread of COVID-19. Some of these include instructions not to abuse the rights of citizens and we've seen one example where the IGP ordered the arrest and investigation of some police officers caught on video engaging in needless violent acts in the pretext of enforcing the lockdown order. However, we haven't seen much of plans or arrangements to protect the police officers and their families from the vulnerabilities of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the course of enforcing the law, police officers come physically in contact with people and they are thus prone to getting infected if they come in contact with infected persons who may be persons in suspected crime scenes or people who come or are brought to police stations or even persons in custody. Law enforcement officers are also entitled and deserve to be protected. They should be provided with protection kits to interact with people who run afoul of the law.

“I know that the NPF has perennially been starved of funds and this is the time the federal government should demonstrate that it cares for the well-being and indeed, safety of our police officers by making available emergency funds to enable them procure protective gadgets to enable them safely and effectively enforce the directives. I reiterate my earlier call for the decongestion of Police cells so that people held unlawfully or unnecessarily, especially people held for minor offences such as misdemeanors should be released. To ensure social distancing among police officers, they should work in shifts to avoid many of them crowding the stations at once. This is a best practice in other climes and in tandem with labour laws regarding work hours as opposed to the situation in Nigerian where officers are made to work 24 hours without time off which in itself, affects their psychological stability, mental balance and sanity which ultimately results to abuse and misuse of firearms.”