Enhancing Community Policing Using A Virtual Community Model

Globalisation and Information Communication Technology have both exposed people to perverted foreign cultures with associated criminal tendencies. Consequently, there has been an increase in the perpetration of crimes in most communities especially in the developing nation like Nigeria. The Nigerian Police has made cogent effort in checking the upsurge of crimes, without significant success. Perhaps, one of the factors responsible for the failure is that the police have not integrated members of the community in their war against crimes or an effective tool has not been employed in reaching members of the community. People have reservations for the Nigerian police on account of three reasons, namely: a) perceived rise in crime/inability of the police to cope with the demand for protection by the citizens, (b) poor perceptions about the ability of the criminal justice system to respond to the needs of the victims of crime and (c) inadequacies of the formal police service. This paper discusses how community policing can be enhanced using virtual community. It describes the modus operandi of existing community policing approach in Nigeria, the associated problems and the changes information technology can make. As part of this research we will review relevant literature on existing virtual communities and we will develop a virtual community model for effective community policing. The paper concludes that community policing can better be enhanced using a virtual community model (VCM).
View more...
   EMBED

Share

Preview only show first 6 pages with water mark for full document please download

Transcript

(IJCSIS) International Journal of Computer Science and Information Security, Vol. 9, No. 11, November 2011 ENHANCING COMMUNITY POLICING USING A VIRTUAL COMMUNITY MODEL Rufai M. M. and Adigun J. O Dept. of Computer Technology, Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, Nigeria Email:[email protected] Abstract - Globalisation and Information Communication Technology have both exposed people to perverted foreign cultures with associated criminal tendencies. Consequently, there has been an increase in the perpetration of crimes in most communities especially in the developing nation like Nigeria. The Nigerian Police has made cogent effort in checking the upsurge of crimes, without significant success. Perhaps, one of the factors responsible for the failure is that the police have not integrated members of the community in their war against crimes or an effective tool has not been employed in reaching members of the community. People have reservations for the Nigerian police on account of three reasons, namely: a) perceived rise in crime/inability of the police to cope with the demand for protection by the citizens, (b) poor perceptions about the ability of the criminal justice system to respond to the needs of the victims of crime and (c) inadequacies of the formal police service. This paper discusses how community policing can be enhanced using virtual community. It describes the modus operandi of existing community policing approach in Nigeria, the associated problems and the changes information technology can make. As part of this research we will review relevant literature on existing virtual communities and we will develop a virtual community model for effective community policing. The paper concludes that community policing can better be enhanced using a virtual community model (VCM). Key words: Community Policing, Virtual Community I. INTRODUCTION • community. Some of the factors responsible for the failure of the police in this regard may be lack of understanding between members of the community and the police. A situation where a communication barrier exists between the police and the community residents aggravates the situation. An un-enlightened rural man sees the police as threat to the peace of their land. Their conception is that the police have come to intrude into their privacy or have come to usurp the power of the community head[3]. Consequently, they meet the police with different unwelcome treatment. A community having such wrong impression needs to be enlightened and adequately oriented on the role of the police in combating crime and the need for their support in making the community peaceful. Community Policing Concepts Community Policing can be defined as a philosophy of or an approach to policing which recognizes the interdependence and shared responsibility of the police and the community in ensuring a safe and secure environment for all the people of the country. Community Policing aims to establish an active and equal partnership between the police and the public through which crime and community safety issues can jointly be determined and solutions designed and implemented. Community policing seeks to achieve the following objectives: • Service orientation: The safety of the community is prioritized. The community is seen as the client and the service need of the client is given proper attention. The service orientation is clientcentered. Partnership: The police see the community as partners in the battle against crime. Consequently, the community needs and policing priorities are determined through consultation with the community. Problem solving: This relates to the joint identification and analysis of the actual and potential causes of crime and conflict within communities. This analysis guides the development of measures to A. The high rate of crime in urban and rural communities call for a review of our approach to crimes fighting and its prevention. Some of the frequently reported crimes are kidnapping, robbery, murder, terrorism, tribal feud to mention but a few. The survey conducted by Centre for Law Enforcement Education in Nigeria (CLEEN)[1] on crime rates revealed that Murder crime increased from 1629 to 2133 in the year 1994 to 2003. These crimes are perpetrated by members of the • .    119 http://sites.google.com/site/ijcsis/ ISSN 1947-5500 (IJCSIS) International Journal of Computer Science and Information Security, Vol. 9, No. 11, November 2011 address such problems over the short-, medium- and long-term. • Empowerment: This refers to the creation of a sense of joint responsibility and a joint capacity for addressing crime, service delivery and safety and security amongst members of the community and The Police Service personnel. Accountability: Accountability will be realized by creating mechanisms through which the Police can be made answerable for addressing the needs and concerns of the communities they serve. • • Why People Lost Trust In Traditional Police Structures Literature on policing has revealed several reasons why people shun reporting of criminal activities and civil complaints to patronize police authorities; they however resort to informal policing structures. The reasons advanced for not reporting their cases to police include: (a) perceived rise in crime/inability of the police to cope with the demand for protection by the citizens, (b) poor perceptions about the ability of the criminal justice system to respond to the needs of the victims of crime and (c) inadequacies of the formal police service. Added to the above reasons is the perceived failure of the state to provide citizens with the protection they require[8]. Of the three reasons found in previous studies, the strongest appears to be rise in crime and perceived inadequacies of the police in the provision of safety and security to the citizens, especially the poor. Jemibewon (2001)[4] also opines that lack of confidence in the police structures appears to be a crucial reason found in the literature on why citizens embrace informal policing structures. The public shun the formal police structure because of community’s grievances against the police, these perceived grievances include: corruption, incompetence, brutalisation of citizens and institutional failure. Furthermore, Del Buono (2003)[2] lends credence to the view above that the police along with the military are among the three most repressive institutions in human society. The police are "largely inactive" in their policing roles, but are active when it comes to harassment of members of the public. Community Policing Effort in Nigeria Police Force The concept of community policing in the Nigeria Police Force surfaced when some police officers were sent to England to understudy community policing as practised in the UK. Consequently, in 2004, it was officially launched in six pilot states (i.e. Benue, Enugu, Jigawa, Kano, Ondo and Ogun). In 2008, in line with the president’s declaration of 7-point agenda, the then Inspector General of Police introduced Community Policing as both the strategy and philosophy of the entire NPF. Some of the existing instrument of community policing in Nigeria Police force are: • Police/Community Relations Committees (PCRCs) (PCRCs) is an-ongoing committee setup by the Nigeria Police Force. It works to bring together members of a locality’s diverse communities and its police officers to improve II • THE EXISTING SYSTEM (THE NIGERIA POLICE FORCE) Legal framework for The Nigeria Police Force The Nigeria Police Force is constitutionally empowered to provide security for lives and property of Nigerians. This vital security apparatus derives its existence from Section 214 (1) of the 1999 Constitution which stipulates that "there shall be a Police Force for Nigeria, which shall be known as the Nigeria Police Force, and subject to the provisions of this section, no other police force shall be established for the Federation or any part thereof" (The Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria. 1999)[9]. Furthermore, Section 4 of the Police Act, 1990 outlines the general duties of the Police as follows : "The police shall be employed for the prevention and detection of crime, the apprehension of offenders, the preservation of law and order, the protection of life and property, and the due enforcement of all laws and regulations with which they are directly charged and shall perform such military duties within or outside Nigeria as may be required of them, by or under the authority of this or any other Act." That these duties of ensuring order, safety and security are important t to the making of a good society is not in doubt. Section 14 (2) (b) of the 1999 Constitution, stipulates that: "The police shall be employed for the prevention and detection of crime, the apprehension of offenders, the preservation of law and order, the protection of life and property, and the due enforcement of all laws and regulations with which they are directly charged and shall perform such military duties within or outside Nigeria as may be required of them, by or under the authority of this or any other Act." .    120 http://sites.google.com/site/ijcsis/ ISSN 1947-5500 (IJCSIS) International Journal of Computer Science and Information Security, Vol. 9, No. 11, November 2011 community and police relations, further an authentic community policing culture, and promote dignity, understanding, and respect in police and community interaction. The PCRC has been established in some part of the country to achieve the aforementioned objective. For instance Community Safety Partnerships have been introduced in two Divisions in Lagos and FCT. The senior representatives involved – from Local Government, police, the communities and many other key agencies have made a commitment to work together in the future to gain a full understanding of the local safety issues that affect their communities and work in a partnership to resolve them. • Establishment of Community Safety and Security Forums Community Safety and Security Forum is one of the recent efforts by the police to promote community/police relationship with the primary objective of collectively fighting crime. The police holds periodic meeting with the community. The local government should be encouraged to play a key role in such structure either as convenor or host. The local councils’ halls have always served as venue for all kinds of community meetings and could serve as the venue and secretariat for the forum. The importance of taking the hosting or organisation of the forum away from the police is to encourage partnership in crime prevention rather than paternalism, where the community members are treated as mere informants. Participants in such a forum should include representatives all stakeholders in crime prevention in the community including women, non-indigenes and (Informal Police) IPS. However, this meeting has not been consistent. It is only conveyed when there is emergency situation as observed in the cases of Niger-Delta unrest and the Boko Haram in Bornu State. • Impediments to The Success of Community Policing In Nigeria The following factors constituted impediments to the successful implementation of community policing in Nigeria. • Internal resistance by policemen who benefited from the traditional policing and who prefer to maintain the status quo; • Lack of commitment to the project by implementing officers; • L ack of support from members of the public; • Inadequate support from the government; • The hostile relationship between the police and the informal policing machinery • P oor welfare package/incentives for policemen. • P ublic Attitudes towards Crime and Justice III The Police Virtual Community Model A community is a geographically circumscribed entity (neighborhoods, villages, etc) while A virtual community is defined as an aggregation of individuals or business partners who interact around a shared interest, where the interaction is at least partially supported and/or mediated by technology and guided by some protocols or norms[6]. Virtual communities can be dedicated to a specific topic, or they can seek to bring people with similar philosophies together. Either way, communication is digitally based, information is shared and membership is optional. Virtual communities, of course, are usually dispersed geographically, and therefore are not communities under the original definition of community. A virtual community is expected to possess the following characteristics [7]: • It is organised around affinities or shared interests. • It supports many to many media communication. • The communication is graphics based supporting multimedia content(e.g. graphics, animations, video, sounds, formatted text, sound) • No geographic boundary or physical contact. .    121 http://sites.google.com/site/ijcsis/ ISSN 1947-5500 (IJCSIS) International Journal of Computer Science and Information Security, Vol. 9, No. 11, November 2011 Virtual Community Registration users Communication Data Extraction & Analysis Police Database Users include Community members, Mass Media, Government Agencies Non Governmental Organisations Etc. Conference Meeting The Nigeria Police Force Training • • The aforementioned features of virtual community pose greater benefits for community policing. A successful community policing requires constant interaction between the police and members of the community. It may be difficult at times to have regular physical interaction with these members at all time. It is on this note that Virtual Community model is required to bridge the communication gap between the police and members of the community. The proposed virtual community is a web based model that will facilitate interaction between the police and members of the community. Its primary objective is to provide a platform for the police to interact with members of the public on issues of common interest such as security and safety. This interaction is intended to facilitate the fulfilment of the objective of community policing. Three issues are central to the design of the police virtual community. These are: i) The Virtual Work Place Environments ii) The Services iii) The communication tools Foreign security agencies Foreign governments The understanding is that each member can communicate with police on issue of common interest or any other issues. However, a member must apply for membership through the virtual community before he becomes a member. The police are at the centre of the communication. All members, send their messages to the police via the virtual community. The police can initiate discussion with members. Likewise members are at liberty to start a discussion with the police. However, provision for members to interact with one another is discouraged. The reason for this is to protect the identity of members and also protect the information supplied by members. The system is said to be centralised. The representative of the police has administrators right. He approves members registration, coordinates discussion, store relevant information in the database and can de-member a member if situation warrants. B. Services A. The Virtual Work Place Environment The virtual work place environment describes the entities that constitute community members, how they are represented in the police virtual community and the access status of each. The community members’ categories include: • • • • • • • The Police Inter-security agency Other government agencies Business Community Mass Media CSOs/NGOs It can be observed from figure one the types of interaction that can take place between the police and the community members. These are: • Registration: This is required of every member before he is admitted as a member. The ideal is that if a member applies for registration, he supplies all personal details as requested by the police. The police can then use their security network to investigate the member before approval is given for membership. The diagram below describes the registration procedures. .    122 http://sites.google.com/site/ijcsis/ ISSN 1947-5500 (IJCSIS) International Journal of Computer Science and Information Security, Vol. 9, No. 11, November 2011 C. The Tools Various communications tools could be used in facilitating interaction between the police and the public. The available tools are: • Email:- The Virtual environment must have provision for members to communicate through electronic mail using members virtual identity as email address. Mails can be sent even when the other member is not available online. The mail will go into its mail box and he can access it when he is available. Chat: Members can engage in real time conversation through text or voice charting • There should be a central webpage which will contain the police mission statements, important information for the public, a report of police success in various communities. Irrespective of the communication tools available, the following are recommended for successful interaction: • • • • The virtual environment should support members in their decision to communicate It should allow users to choose among a range of communication types It should provide the necessary tools to initiate communication as if users are in the real world It should support user requirements such as use of gestures during communication mediated within the virtual world. Recommendations for The Success of The Police Virtual Community. • • • • Communication:- This can be inform of a discussion with the police on issues requiring urgent attention. An example is reporting a crime case, or reporting security threat in an area. The police can as well send security alert message to members of the community. Part of communication is for the police to render an account of their stewardship to the public. This will build the public’s confidence in the police. • Meetings: The police can organise a meeting with the virtual presence of other members of the community. The meeting agenda may problem solving issues. They can also organise a seminar on empowerment. Training: The police can organise training on security tips. They can sensitise members of the public on a newly enacted law so that the public can be aware. Opinion Polls: Polls can be conducted online on issues of common security interest. The results of such polls will aid the police decision making system. • • The Nigerian government should improve on the present infrastructural facilities such as the provision of electricity supply and communication facilities. Computer literacy and proficiency should be promoted among the populace. Computers and its accessories should be affordable The virtual community must be in operation round the clock i.e. 24hours in a day and seven days in a week. The police officer in charge of the virtual community must constantly monitor the web sites and actively participate in the citizen/police interaction Continous solicitation of new members will keep the site fresh and productive IV • • IV Benefits of Virtual Community Interaction with the police through virtual means as observed in the role of virtual communities offers a better option in crime reporting and community policing. It has some inherited benefits or advantages as highlighted below: 1. Increase community access to law enforcement information and services to the community. It can facilitate police-community dialogue, increasing transparency and enabling accurate and timely .    123 http://sites.google.com/site/ijcsis/ ISSN 1947-5500 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. information sharing that can inform police response strategies and save lives. Reduce barriers to information sharing within and among law enforcement agencies across regions and across disciplines. That makes it easier to achieve multijurisdictional and multi-disciplinary coordinated responses to emergencies. Enhance problem-solving efforts through the collection of timely and accurate data fed through robust information systems. Enable standardization and access of local, state, tribal, and federal data collection and data-sharing protocols and information systems, which in turn, can enable the analysis and production of actionable intelligence. Enable organizational efficiencies that inform deployment strategies, improve response times, and create opportunities for community policing activities. Improve recruitment strategies and training availability, through online recruitment portals and training opportunities. V. Conclusion (IJCSIS) International Journal of Computer Science and Information Security, Vol. 9, No. 11, November 2011 [7] Rheingold, Howard. (1994). “The Virtual Community: Homesteading on the Electronic Frontier”. AddisonWesley, Reading, MA. [8] Scharf, W. (2000) “Community Justice and Community Policing in Post-Apartheid South Africa. How Appropriate are the Justice Systems of Africa?’ Paper delivered at the International Workshop on the Rule of Law and Development: Citizen Security, Rights and Life Choices in Low and Middle Income Countries Institute for Development Studies, University of Sussex 1-3 June 2000. [9] The Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999. Rufai Mohammed Mutiu obtained his B.Sc degree from Ogun State University (Presently Olabisi Onabanjo University), Ago Iwoye, Ogun State, Nigeria. He got his Masters in Computer Science from University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos, Nigeria. He is a member of Nigeria Computer Society and presently lectures at Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, Nigeria. His research area is Information Systems Design and Modelling. Adigun Johnson Oyeranmi is a specialists in computer software, security and knowledge management. He obtained his first degree (B.Sc Computer Science) from University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria and his Masters(M.Sc. Computer Science) from University of Lagos. He is a member Nigeria Computer Society of Nigeria and Computer Professionals Council of Nigeria. He is the current Dean of The School of Technology, Yaba College of Technology, Yaba, Lagos. Reaping our society off crime and security hazard is a desirable factor. Consequently, justifying the need for an effective tool in Enhancing Community Policing. There might be some long term reduction in crime rates if the police were able to establish better relation with the public and increase public trust in them so that more crimes were reported. Virtual Community policing offers an effective way to have regular and constant interaction with the community members. It could also be a forum for moulding people’s opinon on sensitive security and governmental issues. The creation of a special unit of whatever designation to monitor and analysis the community interaction with the police will fit that overall aim. Such departmentalization/specialization need not be the subject of legislative but administrative action. Additionally, the government need to provide infracstructure in various communities. At least infracstructure that will facilitate communication. REFERENCES [1] Centre for Law Enforcement Education in Nigeria (CLEEN) Statistics on Crime, 2003 [2] Del Buono, V. (2003) “In Search of Security”, paper presented at In Search of Security: An International Conference, Canada, February 19-22, 2003. [3] George O. S. Amadi (2011), “The Impact of Police Checkpoints on Crime and Policing in Nigeria” Faculty of Law, University of Nigeria [4] Jemibewon, D. (2001) “The Nigerian Experience” in M. Shaw (ed.) Crime and Policing in [5] Transitional Societies, Johannesburg: Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and South African Institute of International Affairs. [6] Preece, Jenny (2000). ”Online Communities: Designing Usability, Supporting Sociability”. John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, UK. ISBN 0-471-80599-8 .  124 http://sites.google.com/site/ijcsis/ ISSN 1947-5500