Prince Adewole Adebayo, leader and former presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), has stated that the Nigerian Police Force is a direct reflection of Nigeria’s development, history and future, urging the nation to invest boldly in policing if it truly desires peace at home and credibility abroad.
Adebayo made the remarks in Lagos at a two-day symposium on “The Nigeria Police Force and the Peace Process in Africa,” organised in collaboration with the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA).
The event brought together key security and policy leaders, including the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, and the Director-General of the NIIA, Professor Eghosa Emmanuel Osaghae.
“Nigerian Police is like a shadow following Nigeria. If there is any aspect of policing you are not satisfied with, it is simply a reflection of our life at a particular time.
“To have a better police, we must have a better society, because the police is a reflection of what the society is,” he said.
Tracing the historical journey of the Police in Lagos in 1861, Chief Adebayo emphasised that the Police was international in outlook from inception, having been created to secure trade routes and protect global commercial interests along the coast.
According to him, decades of military rule and poor democratic prioritisation weakened investment in policing, even though the police remained the “guardian of democracy.”
He stressed that effective policing is impossible without peace, good laws, strong community relations and serious capacity building.
Earlier, the Director-General, NIIA Prof. Osagie, delivered a sweeping historical account of Nigeria’s global peacekeeping footprint, describing the Nigerian Police Force as one of the most experienced peacekeeping institutions in the world.
From Congo in 1960 to Kosovo, East Timor, Somalia, Sudan, Haiti and beyond, Osagie noted that Nigerian police officers have played extraordinary roles in restoring peace, often rising to command positions within the United Nations, African Union and ECOWAS missions.
“The only police force that comes close to Nigeria in peacekeeping operations is India.
“It is not only when we sleep well in Nigeria that we remember the police, but when Liberia, Senegal or Kosovo sleep well too,” he said.
In his keynote address, IGP Kayode Egbetokun highlighted Nigeria’s enduring commitment to multilateral peacekeeping, noting that over 12,000 Nigerian police officers have served across multiple continents under the UN, AU and regional missions.
“The true impact of peacekeeping is not always captured in reports. It is seen when schools reopen, markets return and public trust is restored,” Egbetokun said.
He outlined the evolving challenges facing modern peace operations, including terrorism, transnational crime, cyber threats and resource constraints, but described them as “imperatives for reform, innovation and partnership.”
