Not for the faint of heart: Policing the Nigeria Police, By Chidi Anselm Odinkalu

This then is the narrative of interlocked and overlapping destinies and mutating machinations that makes “Policing the Nigeria Police” such a compelling read. The book offers thoughtful insights policing for the country and argues a persuasive case for decentralisation of the NPF, dispassionately examining proposals for state police, community policing, and even vigilantes. Anyone interested in making policing both effective and accountable in Nigeria has a duty to read it.

On 13 January 1970, Olusegun Obasanjo, an army colonel and General Officer Commanding (GOC) the Third Marine Commando Division of the Nigerian Army, arrived Amichi in the old Nnewi Division of what was then known as the East Central State to accept the capitulation of Biafra from Phillip Effiong, interim leader of the enclave. The encounter occurred in the house of Chief Ben Atuchukwu, one of a pioneer generation of trading magnates, whose exploits bestowed on Nnewi its reputation as the home of…