The Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC) has commended the Commissioner of Police for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Command, CP Ahmed Sanusi, for issuing new directives aimed at tightening compliance with constitutional safeguards during the arrest and detention of suspects.
RULAAC said the Commissioner’s order, which bars officers from holding suspects beyond the constitutionally permitted period without court authorisation and demands prompt completion of investigations and case files, marks a welcome reaffirmation of due process within the police force.
In a statement issued Thursday, RULAAC’s Executive Director, Okechukwu Nwanguma, said the directive also requires proper documentation of confessional statements, including video recording in some cases, and guarantees detainees access to lawyers, relatives and medication. He described these measures as critical to preventing torture and forced confessions in police custody.
The group further praised CP Sanusi for cautioning officers against the practice of detaining suspects for days without arraignment, while pledging institutional backing for officers who follow due process.
Nwanguma said his confidence in CP Sanusi’s leadership was rooted in years of prior engagement, dating back to the Commissioner’s tenure as Officer-in-Charge of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in Lagos, when Nwanguma served as National Coordinator of the Network on Police Reform in Nigeria (NOPRIN).
“Officers like CP Sanusi give us hope that police reform is possible,” Nwanguma said, adding that faithful implementation of the Police Act 2020, including decentralisation, adequate funding and better training, could transform the Nigeria Police Force into a more accountable institution.
Despite the praise, RULAAC raised concerns about how extended-detention orders are obtained in some parts of the country. The group cited reports of investigators allegedly colluding with compromised magistrates to secure detention orders without proper judicial scrutiny, and alleged cases of “standing” or pre-issued warrants used to justify holding suspects who had not been brought before a court.
RULAAC warned that such practices, if confirmed, amount to abuse of both police and judicial processes, and called for every detention-extension application to be case-specific, evidence-based and subject to genuine judicial review. The group said there should be no blanket or pre-issued warrants authorising detention without individualised court consideration.
RULAAC urged the Inspector-General of Police to extend Sanusi’s directive across all police commands nationwide, and called for a Force-wide policy covering detention limits, timely investigations, detainee access to legal and medical support, documentation of confessions, and disciplinary measures for officers who breach the rules.
The group also called on the judiciary to resist becoming, in its words, “a rubber stamp” for police requests to extend detention.
RULAAC stressed that the FCT Command must institutionalise the changes through ongoing training and monitoring so that compliance does not depend on any single Commissioner’s tenure. It said pairing lawful policing with human rights protections would strengthen both public trust and police effectiveness.
The organisation closed its statement by urging the IGP and police formations nationwide to replicate the FCT Command’s approach as a standard practice across the country.
