Alfred Kollie alfredkolliejr92@gmail.com
A Non-Governmental organization, Bowier Trust Foundation (BTF) and the Liberia National Police (LNP) have kick off a partnership in ensuring a better relationship between the community and the LNP personnel.
In the aftermath of the Liberian civil conflict, the community and police have not had a cordial relationship, with some civilians alleging that some police officers tendency to engage in maltreatment and other extrajudicial actions.
In recent times, that trend has been gradually changing, although there’s more to be desired.
Now, the BTFS and the LNP have developed an idea of moving into various communities across Liberia to explain the importance of citizens and the police working together in safeguarding their communities.
During Sunday’s engagement, Police Inspector General Patrick took a back on misconduct of police personnel and act of bribery while performing their duties.
The national new Police Inspector General, Patrick Sudue said the issue of bribery and misconducts by some police personnel contravenes police code of ethics, something he says his administration will not encourage.
Addressing locals in Samukai Town, upper Montserrado County near the Liberian capital, Monrovia this week, he named drunkenness on jobs, consumption of narcotic substances by police officers on duty and extortion of money from citizens as vices his administration will kick against.
“We are talking to our officers to be peaceful, we are talking to them not to use force unless at a constraint where all options are being observed,” the police IG said.
If there is any police officer involved in harassing citizens for money or abusing them, the police chief urged citizens to report that officer and the LNP’s administrative will take the necessary disciplinary action.
“If you see any police officer in uniform and drinking alcohol or in ghettoes taking in narcotic substances, report them to us,” the LNP Inspector General told citizens.
IG Sudue acknowledged that there are some bad apples in the police, but promised that under this administration, the bad ones will be weeded-out, “even if the LNP will be left with ten good police officers so be it.”
The national police chief then warned that “any police man who will be caught in acts of brutality or drunk in uniform, you don’t have a police job to protect anymore.”
While urging police officers to conduct themselves positively, the LNP Boss also also called on community members to respect enforcers of the laws of Liberia.
At the community-police engagement in Samukai Town, members of various communities in the Caldwell area expressed serious concerns about misconduct of some police officers.
The engagement was initiated through a partnership between the Bowier Trust Foundation Switzerland and the Liberia National Police in building relationship between the two groups.
During the dialogue, Police Inspector General Sudue noted that the LNP is faced with some challenges in perfectly executing their duties due to limited resources.
“Right now the government don’t have anything; they are starting on a bad footing and this is the reason why we are coming to the community to assist us,” the police chief stressed.
The LNP Inspector General further noted that the current strength of his men is not encouraging to provide complete security service for Liberia’s current population.
He placed the total number of LNP Personnel in Liberia at approximately 5,000, a figure he said cannot serve a population of about four million people.
However, the police chief wants citizens to exercise restraint until government have the capacity to improve the manpower of the police force.
Until that happens, he wants the community to join the LNP in curtailing crimes.
The new LNP administration headed has meanwhile, begun initiating new approach in improving Police relationship with various communities in Liberia in order to reduce crimes.
For his part, Assistant Police Inspector for Operation, Nelson Freeman noted that the LNP is working for community and should not create fear among its members.
According to Freeman, complaints from citizens about the misconducts of some police officers are true but promise them that the leadership of the LNP is working in improving on that.
Freeman however stated that the LNP administration is considering monitoring and evaluation of its officers in the interest of the force.
The police official also noted that it was good that community members voice out their disenchantment of the LNP, as a way of helping to build a bridge between them.
During the occasion, Bowier Trust Liberia Management Team Administrator Hamnson Gaye said the current engagement by the LNP is an issue of interest to his organization.
Gaye said the LNP’s decision to have a community-to-community engagement is necessary in creating a cordial relations and partnership between the police and the community.
“Seeing our police coming down to our people is a good thing because manpower is an issue and the community will help to secure its self in the absent of that if they and the police work together,” Gaye said.
According to him, BTFS remains committed in working with the LNP on mitigating crimes in the community and building a vibrant relationship.
“BTFS is an international NGO that is trying to work with the Liberia National Police on issues that deal with crime and security, as well as other issues like sanitation and empowering our young girls and women around here, and we are happy today to see our LNP here,” Gaye explained.
The group believes that a better collaboration between the community and the police will enable them have a safe environment.
At the same time, some community members have expressed gratitude for the engagement and lauded the LNP for the level of security provided the community thus far.
Nana Oliver Dangbuah, the Youth Chairman of Samukai Town told the gathering that limited logistics and support to police depots within the Caldwell area is contributing to poor performance of LNP officers assigned there.
Dangbuah however wants the national police to do proper monitoring and evaluation of its officers.
“Monitoring and evaluation has to be actually done by the police, there are people in the police who have different attitudes and some of them do not work according to their duty manual,” Dangbuah said.
Ruth Sayndee, another resident in the area complained of several acts of misconduct exhibited by some police officers in her community.
Madam Sayndee said some of the police personnel assigned at the depot in Samukai Town lack good manner of approach, something that scares citizens away from engaging them on security matters.
“Sometimes when we go at the depot for any case, police officers there shout at us and sometimes abuse us like we are living with them. We are responsible people, so if they abuse us at time, we do the same to them and it turns out in confusion. We don’t want that to happen again,” Madam Sayndee explained.
She also pleaded with LNP authorities to take punitive measures against LNP Officers involved in unprofessional acts.