Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, has said no Nigerian has the right to confront policemen or retaliate even if the policeman slaps him/her ‘civilian’.
Speaking via his Twitter account, the Force PRO advised any such victim of Police brutality to rather file a complaint with the law enforcement agency.
He was reacting to a viral video of a man dragging a rifle with a policeman during a heated argument and suspicious molestation over his phone.
Adejobi said if a person assaults police personnel in uniform, it would be seen as ‘an act of disrespect to Nigeria.’
He said, “Even if a policeman on uniform slaps a civilian, the civilian has no right to retaliate. More so, if he’s on uniform, it’s an act of disrespect to Nigeria to beat an officer on uniform.
“The disrespect is not to the policeman but to our nation and it’s a crime as enshrined in our criminal laws.
“So, it’s not a case of what the policeman did that led to it, but the reaction of the civilians who actually assaulted the police.
“If police assault a civilian, you report and actions will be taken to rebuke him, not to take the law into your hands.”
“Let alone, it’s a matter of checking of phones, which can be easily reported and addressed. Now they are kept in our 5-star hotel in Lagos and will be in court on Monday.
“Are you going to visit them or send them food, or appear in court to defend them? Don’t support what is bad, OK.”