One needs to applaud Nigerians who dare to publicly express their views because this can benefit society. It’s no mean task, so when courageous people say what they mean and mean what they say, I mention them on this page. I take note when Effiong Inibehe, a human rights and litigation lawyer, talks about her equally fearless client over a public issue that gets one individual angry with them. Inibehe was on Arise TV, May 2, 2026, where he narrated how his client was arrested by the police for talking online about a book she bought, but whose contents she considered inappropriate for kids. Inibehe alleged that the woman was locked up in a police cell because the author of the said book reported her to the police.
He further clarified that the case was a civil one, so his client ought not to have been locked up like a criminal. To me, if a citizen is locked up when they shouldn’t we should all find it concerning. Reason? Tomorrow, another citizen will be a victim of enforcement which the law doesn’t permit. Now, my intervention here is not to castigate any of the parties, not even the police, because much of such has always been done in our public space. Solution to a known problem, as the regular reader of this page already knows, is ever my focus. Worthy of note is that Inibehe said he contacted the Inspector General of Police, who intervened to get his client released. That’s one plus in favour of the police in this matter. By the way, I’ve had reasons to bring issues to the attention of senior officers in the police, and they intervened positively.
On the two occasions that I got direct interventions, it was about vehicle papers. These were the same papers every uniformed officer checked in Abuja, and you would hear them say, “Oga, you can go.” But on the first occasion, some policemen on patrol stopped me somewhere between Osun and Ondo states and made me follow them to a Divisional Police headquarters. I declined when clearly illegal demands were made of me, as they were made of other road users who promptly complied. Instead, I waited for about six hours to see the DPO. I showed him copies of my papers, and he said his men had no reason to interfere with my journey. He said I could go.
On the second occasion, I drove into another DPO’s office between Edo and Kogi states, showed the DPO my papers, which some touts on the road (who claimed to be task force) had rejected while demanding some payment. The DPO made his findings and said the papers covered all that was needed. He warned the rogues to back off; otherwise, he would have them dealt with himself. I know many Nigerians are beneficiaries of similar positive interventions from the police hierarchy. They lodge legitimate complaints, and higher authorities step in, just as the IGP has done in the case of Inibehe and his client.
Meanwhile, I’ve had occasions on this page to commend the police for some of the corrective measures they undertook. One can’t quickly forget the efforts of a former police FPRO, Prince Olumuyiwa Adejobi. He responded timeously to online complaints and encouraged police PROs at the state level to do the same. Adejobi personified the police effort to make members of the force responsible and accountable. Once he learnt of a complaint, he worked within the system to address it. Citizens never had it so good. We shouldn’t forget this. Where there are further corrections to be effected in our law enforcement system is what we should focus on, and it’s what I do here.
Central to Inibehe’s complaint is how the law is not often complied with, particularly in situations where civil cases are treated like criminal cases by the police. Part of it is also how some elements in the police allow themselves to be used by some Nigerians to embark on unlawful arrest, intimidation, and harassment. I think these are serious issues, and we shouldn’t be silent about them. If a parent gives feedback on the contents of a book she purchased with her money, does she not have the right to do so? Instead, Inibehe’s client was arrested and locked up. What consumers say should be feedback for makers of products. It should never be treated as a crime, which is what has happened in the case of Inibehe’s client.
However, this situation reminded me of the steps I took in the past as a consumer who was not satisfied with the service provided. It also leads to what I wish to state to every consumer who has a complaint. There’s a laid-down procedure to follow when one has complaints. If seeking redress, not just expressing a view, is the goal, it’s better to follow the procedure. This is easier to do now as complainants can fill out a form online and get responses from most regulatory bodies that are up and doing. The same time it takes to make a video and post on Facebook is what it takes to fill out a form. When the latter is done, no product maker can successfully instigate the police to make unlawful arrests. On many occasions in the past, when I followed the laid-down procedure, it led to the redress I sought.
For example, at the time I was running an academic programme in Zaria, Kaduna State, the booster station of a pay-TV to which I subscribed began to shut down at 12 midnight. This was meant to be a 24/7 service, but it was shut down. It mattered to me because midnight was when I had the time to settle down and watch the news.
I did my research to know where and why the shutdown was being done. In the process, I learnt that many Zaria residents had brought similar complaints to the pay-TV’s retail outlets. I wrote, backed with dates and time, to the then Consumer Protection Council, now FCCPC. They acted, and the midnight shutdown at the booster station in Zaria was stopped.
Other users of this pay-TV in Zaria didn’t know how this happened, but I knew my intervention, following the laid-down procedure, led to it. One retailer in Zaria, who was aware of the efforts I put in, later called to thank me. No service provider recruited the police to come looking for me.
Meanwhile, I don’t condemn any consumer going to social media to complain about their experience with a product or service. Social media is one of the platforms where one can make one’s views known. But, if one really wants to concretely bring about positive changes that help fellow Nigerians, if one wants to engage in advocacy whose outcomes can help others, following the laid-down procedure is the better way to do it in our clime. I followed some issues through, and I got results, as a few of my narrated encounters indicated. Sometimes, I could have overlooked some issues. But I chose to follow them through. Why? I want to know how the system around a specific issue works. As a journalist, I need to have an informed opinion and, as such, be in a position to better inform my readers. I feel Nigerians should equally benefit from any intervention I make. Private citizens do it in Western nations, and it’s one reason accountability is better established in public institutions such as the police. Accountability didn’t happen overnight. The system doesn’t always correct itself. Courageous citizens fight for it. And it’s here that the experience of Inibehe’s client over the contents of a book can become beneficial to other Nigerians.
As Inibehe explains, he has many other clients who have been subjected to unlawful arrests. I suggest all his clients should collaborate to form an advocacy group as part of their own contribution towards evolving a better Nigeria. This group can focus on advocating for the right of consumers to express their views on products and services. Such an NGO can rescue consumers, in real time, from unlawful arrest as well as provide them with legal aid. This effort will put unscrupulous law enforcement officers on their toes, in addition to what the police hierarchy is doing to curb excesses within their ranks.
Read the full article here
