COMMUNITY POLICING AND STATE SECURITY IN RIVERS STATE: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31150/ajshr.v2i4.453Keywords:
POLICING, COMMUNITYAbstract
The recent trend of insecurity in Nigeria especially in Rivers State where crimes such as kidnapping, armed robbery, cultism and other related fraudulent practices are on the increase in geometric progression constitute a sort of apprehension to major stakeholders and the public at large. This situation is further aggravated by the increasing inability of security agencies especially the police to protect live and property. This apparent Hobbesian state as reiterated above constitutes a major concern to all stakeholders especially the government. Therefore, it is against this backdrop that this paper examined the impact of community policing on state security in Rivers State. The research was guided by four research objectives and four corresponding research questions. The study was anchored on Broken Windows and Structural Functionalist theories. A descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. The population of the study consisted of five million, one hundred and ninety-eight thousand, seven hundred and sixteen (5,198,716). The sample size of four hundred (400) was selected using Taro Yamane Formula, while the stratified random sampling technique was adopted in the selection of respondents from the population. A self-made questionnaire titled ‘Community Policing and State Security Questionnaire’ (CPSSQ) was drafted for the study. Data analysis was carried out using Mean and Standard Deviation. The finding revealed that the activities of community policing led to the reduction in criminal activities such as burgling, rape, cult-clashes, and drug abuse. The study also revealed that insufficient funding, lack of latest equipment and armories, lack of cooperation, too much political interference, ineffective communication channels, recruitment of unqualified personnel, lack of technical support, lack of regular training, negligence by the government, and low salary structure poses a challenge to effective community policing in Rivers State, Nigeria. On the above, we recommended that there is a need for adequate training of personnel involved in community policing. Community policing should be adequately funded by the federal and state government. This will help in improving the welfare of the personnel involved in the act of protecting life and property in the community thereby leading to high performance in the business of protecting life and property.
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