Utilise response unit to report misconduct of officers, police tell Nigerians

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has asked citizens to utilise the complaint response unit (CRU) to report misconduct of officers. 

El-Musta Sani, head of police CRU, said this on Tuesday during a summit organised by the Public Complaints Commission (PCC) in Abuja.

The summit was organised in collaboration with the Foundation for Youth Empowerment and Social Justice (FYESJ).

The police CRU was created in 2015 to handle complaints against police officers. 

Speaking during the summit, Sani said the unit received 459 complaints from Nigerians in the first quarter of 2024. 

The CRU boss said 265 of the cases had been resolved while 195 are still being looked into.

“It takes the unit 21 days to receive and conclude investigations on all complaints,” Sani said.

“The major problem is that the institutions are there, but Nigerians do not know their functions.

“We receive complaints through WhatsApp, Twitter handles, phone calls, and walk-in petitions. The unit is directly responsible to the office of the inspector general of police through the public relations officer.”

He assured Nigerians that the unit will organise more awareness campaigns to help the public know how to report police misconduct.

Also speaking, Abimbola Ayo-Yusuf, chief commissioner of PCC, said there is a need to strengthen institutions to combat administrative injustice and corruption.

“The purpose of this summit, which is to foster collaboration between the Public Complaints Commission and other organisations, is quite timely and key to the understanding of the mandate of the commission,” Ayo-Yusuf said.

“The PCC, known as the Nigerian version of the ombudsman, was established to investigate complaints regarding administrative actions.”

Sandra Benson, director of administration at FYESJ, said the organisation and PCC are working to ensure justice for victims of police misconduct.

She called for collective action and immediate response in resolving citizens’ complaints.