Community Policing And Rising Insecurity In Nigeria: Challenges In Public Administration

Abstract

This paper assesses the relationship between community policing and public administration, examining the challenges public administration faces in enhancing the efficiency of community policing in Nigeria. Interviews were used to get primary data for this paper, while published materials like textbooks and journals were used to gather secondary data. Descriptive analysis was used to examine the data. Employing social structure theory as a theoretical framework, the paper identifies a strong interdependent relationship between community policing and public administration. Public administration leverages community policing as a mechanism for implementing security policies. The paper concludes that community policing is the most effective approach for public administration to manage security in Nigeria. It suggests, among other recommendations, that state institutional deficits should be addressed to improve the weak socio-economic conditions of the community. When government policies fail to alleviate poverty, hunger, hardship, injustice, and unemployment, individuals may resort to desperate measures for survival, rendering community policing ineffective in managing disorder. Additionally, the paper advocates for rebranding police and other governmental leadership to emphasize people-oriented governance practices.