Rethinking “Police Is Your Friend”: Lessons from Lagos By Yunus Saleh Ahmad
“Police is your friend.”
For decades, that slogan has echoed across Nigeria’s public spaces—painted on signboards, printed on patrol vehicles, and repeated in official messaging. Yet for many Nigerians, the phrase has often provoked more debate than belief. How, many ask, can an institution tasked with enforcing compliance, restricting liberty, and sanctioning wrongdoing be described as a friend?
This lingering tension between enforcement and public trust remains one of the most complex challenges facing policing in Nigeria today.
Interestingly, my reflections on that question took a new direction after reading a recently published book titled “CP Jimoh: The Art of Policing Lagos.” The timing was particularly striking, coming shortly after the promotion of Moshood Olohundare Jimoh from Commissioner of Police to Assistant Inspector-General (AIG) in the Nigeria Police Force.
The book offers an insightful portrait of Jimoh’s tenure as Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, presenting not only his operational strategies but also a broader philosophy about what policing should look like in the contemporary world.
What emerges from the work is both impressive and thought-provoking.
Often, the impressions societies hold about institutions—or even the individuals who serve within them—are shaped by isolated experiences, incomplete narratives, or historical grievances. Yet when documentary evidence, data, and detailed analysis are presented, those impressions can sometimes change.a
This tension between perception and responsibility forms the intellectual backbone of the book that carefully examines the evolving strategies used by the Lagos State Police Command in tackling crime within one of Africa’s most complex megacities.
Co-authored by PRNigeria Fellows Adams Adebisi Adams and Temitope Ibrahim, the book offers a thoughtful interrogation of traditional policing narratives while presenting a reform-oriented framework for modern law enforcement in Nigeria.
The authors begin by confronting public skepticism head-on.
In societies where enforcement is frequently equated with oppression, the notion that the police can be described as “friends” appears contradictory. After all, the police arrest suspects, enforce laws, and prosecute individuals involved in crimes such as armed robbery, assault, kidnapping, and drug trafficking.
Yet the book reframes this argument with strategic clarity.
If a friend is someone who protects you from harm—even when such protection requires difficult interventions—then policing, at its best, aligns with that protective mandate.
This conceptual shift is central to the book’s argument. It suggests that the relationship between the police and the public need not be defined solely by coercion or fear. Instead, it can evolve into a partnership built on shared responsibility for security.
At the heart of this narrative is the leadership approach of Jimoh, whose tenure in Lagos is presented as a case study in reform-driven policing. Under his administration, policing is portrayed not merely as enforcement but as collaboration.
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The book documents how urban policing in Lagos is gradually evolving toward a more integrated model that emphasises community-centred policing, dialogue-driven engagement, institutional transparency, intelligence-led operations, and confidence-building between citizens and law enforcement agencies.
Rather than relying exclusively on punitive measures to maintain order, the authors highlight a strategy that prioritises inclusion. In this model, citizens are no longer passive recipients of law enforcement actions; they become active stakeholders in maintaining security. This shift is particularly relevant in a city like Lagos.
With its vast population, economic dynamism, and social complexity, Lagos cannot be effectively policed through traditional command-and-control methods alone. The book therefore argues that sustainable security in such environments requires continuous engagement with communities, technological innovation, and preventive intelligence.
One of the most compelling contributions of the book is its forward-looking outlook on urban security.
It recognises that megacities demand adaptive policing strategies that are responsive not only to crime but also to public expectations. By fostering trust between citizens and law enforcement, crime prevention becomes proactive rather than reactive.
Adams and Ibrahim present Jimoh’s reform agenda as more than administrative adjustment; it represents a philosophical shift in policing culture.
The message is simple but powerful: legitimacy in law enforcement cannot be sustained by fear alone. It must be built through engagement, transparency, and accountability.
In this sense, the book contributes meaningfully to Nigeria’s broader security discourse. It bridges the often difficult gap between authority and empathy, enforcement and community trust.
For policymakers, security practitioners, and scholars of governance, the work offers both reflection and direction. It challenges readers to reconsider long-held assumptions about policing while presenting practical examples of how institutional reforms can reshape public perception.
Of course, no policing system is perfect, and no institution is immune from criticism. However, serious discussions about reform must be grounded in evidence rather than assumption. Books such as CP Jimoh: The Art of Policing Lagos help provide that evidence by documenting the strategies, experiments, and institutional learning processes occurring within Nigeria’s security sector.
As Nigeria continues to grapple with evolving security challenges—from urban crime to misinformation and cyber threats—the need for adaptive, community-oriented policing will only grow.
On a personal note, I must congratulate AIG Moshood Olohundare Jimoh and the other officers recently promoted to the ranks of Assistant Inspectors-General and Commissioners of Police. Their elevation reflects both institutional recognition and the expectation of continued service to the nation.
If the lessons documented in this book are sustained and expanded, the long-debated slogan—“Police is your friend”—may gradually move from aspiration to reality.
And when that happens, it will not merely be a slogan on a signboard. It will be the foundation of a new relationship between citizens and those sworn to protect them.
Yunus Saleh Ahmad is a communication student at Bayero University Kano.
Email: [email protected]
