Open Letter To President Buhari On Police Uniforms

 

I would like to call the attention of Mr. President to the issue of the multiple uniforms our police are wearing.

The black on black used to be the traditional uniform of our policemen until the former president came with the issue of police reforms and that was when the change of uniform came into play. The new uniform is suppose to be a sky blue top and the normal black trousers but I have come to notice that some policemen are yet to have the new uniform and the reason for this according to what I read was that only senior members of the police force in Abuja and other major cities would wear the uniform.

Now we know it is not all Nigerians that are fortunate to acquire the information I have gathered over the change of the police uniform, what most of us might have heard was the fact that the police would be changing uniform. This was actually what I also heard and that was what almost kept me in trouble on this faithful day.

I was in a car with my friend around Ikeja area, when this police officer pulled us over. At first I was very calm and respectful but when he started asking some irrelevant questions, I lost it. The officer in question was putting on the traditional black on black uniform but when he started with his irrelevant question that was when I remembered that according to the new police reform the police shouldn't be putting on black on black. I immediately told him I wasn't going to answer him anymore because he is not putting on the correct police uniform and I can’t be so sure he is a policeman because he doesn't even have an identity card.

We argued this for an hour, during the argument two other policemen joined and they were putting on the correct uniform and they were the one I answered to. When they came, I noticed the officer that had pulled us over referring to them as Oga as he tried explaining what happened to them. When they turned to us, I gently explained my side of the story to them, stating that I only became disobedient when the officer in question didn't show us his ID card and I also pointed out the difference in uniform and that was confusing. They made me understood the fact that both uniforms are still valid as the authentic police uniform and immediately I apologies for my actions though I was reluctant but I did it so I could just go.

At that moment I was still very much confuse as at why the police would be having two uniforms after I heard it on the news that they had changed from the traditional black on black to sky blue on black and this was what led me into further reading about the issue.

My point is this, what about those that don’t really understand or those that didn’t get the complete news that the change of the uniform is only for the senior officers and have been in trouble for refusing to obey a police officer because they thought he or she wasn’t putting on the right uniform.

The rope on the uniform is what we use to identify a senior police officer from a junior and I still believe that is how it is suppose to be, because even the army, the is the head of all the security forces in Nigeria are known for one uniform and we can identify their rank by looking at the pinned star on their chest and the rope on the uniform, so why the case of the police different?

Perhaps just like Rotimi Fasan said in his article I also see this as case of unspoken discrimination against junior police officers and I would like Mr. President to please look into this.