In efforts towards protecting citizens’ privacy rights, Commissioner of Police in Edo State, Funsho Adegboye has issued a directive banning operatives from conducting phone searches on civilians.
This move marks a significant shift in law enforcement practices, aiming to foster trust and respect between the police force and the community they serve.
The state’s police spokesperson, Chidi Nwabuzor, disclosed this information in a statement shared on the command’s official social media platform, X formally Twitter, noting:
“Commissioner of Police, Edo State warns officers and men to desist from this act, as the inspector general of police directs Zonal AIGs, Command, and Formation CPs to monitor their personnel.”
The prohibition by the command follows closely on the heels of a similar caution issued by the police commissioner in Lagos State less than two months ago to operatives within the region.
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Instances of operatives violating the privacy of Nigerians by conducting phone searches have surged despite repeated admonitions from police authorities against such actions.
The Force spokesperson, Olumyiwa Adejobi over a year ago warned operatives against such acts.
“Stop checking phones on the road. You can’t check somebody’s phone. It is his personal property. You cannot do it,” Mr Adejobi had said in an interview with Channels Television.
Mr Adejobi, an assistant police commissioner, had said all the operatives are aware that searching a citizen’s phone is against the law.
“In the police, we have those who are deviant. There is no police officer who doesn’t know that you must not dress improperly, you must not smoke while on duty, you must not slap a Nigerian and you must not use a cutlass to flog.
“There is no Nigerian police personnel who will tell me today that they are not aware because, in the training school, it’s part of the force manual; they must have taught you all these things,” he said in 2022.
He emphasized that any operative found culpable of misconduct, whether disciplinary or criminal in nature, will face appropriate consequences, including dismissal, demotion, or severe reprimand.
But despite the repeated warnings by the authorities, reported cases of phone searches by operatives have been on the rise.
Credible News.ng
