Prominent human rights lawyer and activist, Prof. Joy Ngozi Ezeilo, has raised concerns over the alleged commercialization of services by the Nigerian Police Force (NPF). In a post shared on her X (formerly Twitter) account on Monday, October 1, Ezeilo claimed that the police are now charging exorbitant fees, with amounts reportedly as high as N300,000, particularly in Enugu.
According to Ezeilo, the police have been neglecting their duty to assist crime victims, especially those who cannot afford these fees. She expressed frustration over the lack of response from the police in such cases, stating, “The Nigerian Police Force (NPF) has started commercializing their services, charging fixed amounts as high as 300k (in Enugu, for example), and hardly responds to poor crime victims requiring their intervention."
Ezeilo also highlighted the unresolved cases of police brutality across the country, noting that justice has yet to be served for many victims. She lamented the lack of progress in implementing recommendations from the #ENDSARS Judicial Panels of Inquiry, which were set up to investigate police brutality in the aftermath of the nationwide #ENDSARS protests.
“I was a part of the #ENDSARS Judicial Panel of Inquiry on Police Brutality. It’s disheartening that justice has not been served, and the decisions from the various Panels of Inquiry nationwide have yet to be implemented,” she added.
Ezeilo’s remarks have reignited public discourse on the state of law enforcement in Nigeria, calling attention to the urgent need for police reforms and the implementation of recommendations from previous inquiries.
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