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15 Nnamdi Azikiwe U. J. Int'l L. & Juris. 1 (2024)

handle is hein.journals/naujilj15 and id is 1 raw text is: NAUJILJ 15 (1) 2024 THE POLICE AND POLICING SYSTEM IN SOUTH AFRICA: THE LAW AND LESSONS FOR NIGERIA* Abstract The sociological theory of law identifies human society as one characterised by conflicting and contradictory interests. These interests must have to be ironed out for peaceful, progressive and sustainable social development to take place in such a society. In order for effective harmanisation of human interests to be possible, states have adopted the police as a branch of the executive to police societies for social equilibrium to be attained, bearing in mind that conflicts are imperative part of society. Police is therefore a universal institution. However, the degree of efficiency in the police varies significantly from one society to another. In this paper, the researcher employed doctrinal legal research methodology to, inter alia, x-ray the police and law enforcement in South Africa with a view to ascertaining whether policing in South Africa unfolds any lessons for Nigeria. It was found that the two jurisdictions have similar history in police origin, structure and organisation. That Nigeria has some lessons to learn from the system of policing in South Africa. We recommended, among other things, upward review of qualification for enlistment, salary, welfare, rigorous training, effective supervision, increased oversight checks by the National Assembly, community policing, etc, as measures that could reposition the Nigerian police for optimum results. Key Words: Law, Police, Policing, South Africa and Nigeria. 1. Introduction The sociology of police and policing is as old as the society itself. Man lives together in society. Thomas Hobbes painted graphic picture of human society during the pre-social contract era. He emphasized that 'war of every man against every man' characterising that epoch rendered life brutish, nasty and short. Because man realised that the hobbesian 'war of all against all' will continue to prevail unless man finds the apparatus of social modulations; the social contract was instituted. In the social contract therefore, man instituted the state and surrendered all their powers to the state to wield for their wellbeing, so posits Thomas Hobbes.1 The state therefore constituted other agencies that help in the maintenance of social order and tranquility, one of which is the police. The Police institution was development in Greece and in the Roman world. The Roman Empire influenced the development of modern Police in Britain. Sir Robert Peel was reputed to have found the first organized modern Police in 1829 and the Metropolitan Police was established on his initiative in Lincoln the same year.2 The Police in Africa is a colonial institution.3 Prior to the colonial presence in Africa, various ethnic societies had their own peculiar system of the police.4 For example, from 1861 and upwards, Caskey and Freeman's thirty consular guards in Lagos,5 the Royal Niger Armed Constabulary, the Niger Coast Constabulary, all shaped the development of modern police in Nigeria. The need to protect British trade interests and prevent rifts between the natives and the imperial merchants as well as the perceived need to deal with native chiefs who opposed British interests and * NWOCHA Matthew Enya is a Professor of Law at Ebonyi State University Abakaliki. and ** NWUHUO Friday Linus is a PhD student at Faculty of Ebonyi State University Abakaliki. 1 J Wolffe, 'Hobbes and the Motivations of Social Contract Theory' International Journal of Philosophical Studies (2)(2) (1994), 271-272. 2B Whitaker, Police in Society, pp. 35- 36 cited in BC Okoro, The Police, Law and Your Right (Lagos: Princeton Pub. Co; 2013) p. 2 ' Though each Kingdom, Emirate and traditional societies in Africa had their peculiar system of police and policing prior to colonialism, these traditional police institution were replaced with the colonial police which were bequeathed to the African states upon attainment of independence. 4This was known by various names. The Northern Hausa/Fulani referred to the Police institution as the Dogari or Yan Gadi and later as Yan Doka. The Yoruba referred to the Police as the Akoda or Olopa while the Igbo called it the Ohu or Kotima. SMC Caskry and HS Freeman were granted permission to maintain in the Colony of Lagos consular guards. This marked the nation of organized police in Nigeria. 11

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