The Nigerian police force public relation unit of the force headquarters released a publication some days back which was signed by the force public relations officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, stating that the force is coming after a famous skit maker Mr Abdulgafar Abiola, aka cute Abiola, and will prosecute him for always wearing the Nigerian Police Force uniforms in some of his skits, and painting the Nigerian police in a bad light.
Many people have raised concern as to the reason the police force headquarters would want to go after a skit maker for shooting his skits dubbing a police attire. Some said that it is all entertainment and that the police have no jurisdiction or power to arrest and prosecute a person merely because that person dubbed a police attire to shoot a video.
Now let’s push emotions and sentiments aside and see what the law says about this act of using police uniforms or any other law enforcement agency uniform for skits or for whatever reasons.
Section 251 of the Criminal Code Act which was captioned, Bringing contempt on the uniform, states thus;
Any person who, not being a person serving in any of the armed or police forces of Nigeria, wears the uniform of any of these forces, or any dress having the appearance or bearing any of the regimental or other distinctive marks of any such uniform, in such manner or in such circumstances as to be likely to bring contempt on that uniform, or employs any other person so to wear such uniform or dress, is guilty of a simple offense, and is liable to imprisonment for three months or to a fine of forty naira.
Subsequently, the Penal Code in its Section 133 provides as follows;
Whoever not belonging to a certain class of public officer wears any dress or carries a token resembling a dress or token used by that class of public officer with the intention that it may be believed that he belongs to that class of public officer, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to forty naira or with both.
Both the criminal code applicable in the South and the penal code applicable in the North criminalizes the use of police uniforms or any other force agency uniform for skit-making, content creation or for whatever reasons. The punishment for this offense as provided by law is a 3-6 months imprisonment term or a fine of 40 naira or both.
The offense committed when a person who is not in any law enforcement agency in Nigeria wears a force uniform for whatever reason is contempt of the uniform and impersonation of an officer. To that extent, anybody who wants to shoot a movie, skit or whatever reason that would warrant that person to dub on a police uniform or any other force uniform but obtain express consent from the law enforcement agency or risk getting prosecuted for the offense of bringing contempt to the force uniform and impersonation of an officer of the law.