Nigeria Police was first established in 1820. In 1879, a 1200 member armed paramilitary Hausa Constabulary was formed.
In 1896, the Lagos Police was established. A similar Force, the Niger Coast Constabulary was formed in Calabar in 1894 under the newly proclaimed Niger Coast Protectorate.
In the north, the Royal Niger Company set up the Royal Niger Company Constabulary in 1888.
When the protectorate of Northern and Southern Nigeria were proclaimed in the early 1900s, part of the Royal Niger Company Constabulary became the Northern Nigeria Police and part of the Niger Coast Constabulary became the Southern Nigeria Police.
During the colonial period, most police were associated with local governments (native authorities).
In the 1960s, under the First Republic, these forces were first regionalized and then nationalized.
The British merged Lagos colony and the southern and northern protectorates in 1913 and named the new colony Nigeria.
The northern and southern regional police forces were later merged, in 1930, to form the colony’s first national police – the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
The Nigeria Police Force is the principal law enforcement agency in Nigeria. It has staff deployment across the 36 states of the country and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The command and control of the Nigeria Police Force is under the Inspector General of Police.
For administrative ease, the Force is divided into seven (7) administrative departments, viz. Finance and Administration; Operations; Logistics; Force Criminal Investigation Department; Training; Research and Planning; and Information and Communication Technology, each headed by a Deputy Inspector General of Police.
The Force is further divided into 12 operational Zonal Commands (usually comprising between two and four State Commands) and 37 State Commands including the FCT (usually comprising Area Commands which further comprises Divisions).
While the zone is headed by an Assistant Inspector General of Police, the State Command is headed by a Commissioner of Police, the Area Command by an Assistant Commissioner of Police and the Division by a any officer in the Superintendent cadre.
The current and 20th indigenous Inspector-General of Police is IGP Mohammed Abubakar Adamu, NPM, mni.
DUTIES OF THE NIGERIA POLICE FORCE
Section 4 of the Police Acts and Regulations lists the duties of the police force to include:
- The prevention and detection of crime.
- The apprehension of offenders.
- The preservation of law and order.
- The protection of life and property.
- The due enforcement of laws and regulations with which they are directly charged.
- The performance of such military duties within and outside Nigeria as may be required of them by or under the authority of the police act or any other act.
RANKS OF THE NIGERIA POLICE FORCE
- Inspector General of Police
- Deputy Inspector General of Police
- Assistant Inspector General of Police
- Commissioner of Police
- Deputy Commissioner of Police
- Assistant Commissioner of Police
- Chief Superintendent of Police
- Superintendent of Police
- Deputy Superintendent of Police
- Assistant Superintendent of Police
- Inspector of Police
- Sergeant Major
- Sergeant
- Corporal
- Constable
ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE OF THE NIGERIA POLICE FORCE
A Department – Finance and Administration
B Department – Operations
C Department – Logistics and Supply
D Department – Criminal Investigation
E Department – Training
F Department – Research and Planning
G Department – Information and Communication Technology
ENTRY LEVELS INTO THE NIGERIA POLICE FORCE
- Constable
- Cadet Inspector
- Cadet Assistant Superintendent of Police
- Nigeria Police Academy degree programme
