INSECURITY: RETHINKING COMMUNITY POLICING AND CRIME MANAGEMENT IN IKEJA AREA OF LAGOS STATE
Abstract
The provision of adequate security is a social pre-requisite for the survival of any society. However, in countries such as Nigeria, the emergence and growth of community policing has thrived on the inadequacies, shortcomings and several inadequacies attributed to formal policing systems. The Nigerian police force have been severely criticised for several atrocities, including its inability to curtail crimes as such many people have turned to community policing. This study therefore examines the community policing and crime management in Ikeja in terms of its forms, roles, efficacy and challenges in the management of crime. The study adopted the survey research design. Data for the study was collected through the quantitative method from a total of 400 respondents chosen through the multi-stage sampling technique. Findings from the study showed that the use of community policing as a security agent in Ikeja has led to a moderate decline in crime rates. The study also found that the most profound reasons for the adoption of community policing are police ineffectiveness and increases in crime wave. Other reasons found by the study include lack of police presence. Findings from the study also showed that members of the Ikeja community identify the roles of community policing in crime prevention and perceive it as a positive compared to the roles performed by the NPF. However, as indicated by the study, community policing is beset by challenges that affect its performance, these include; institutional constraints, police perception, god-father-ism and poor funding. Based on the study findings, the study recommends a restructuring of the NPF that considers grey areas such as police public image and the lack of public trust and partnership.
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