Police Clarify IGP Disu’s Position on Recording Officers

Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu

Police Clarify IGP Disu’s Position on Recording Officers

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has clarified that Inspector-General of Police Olatunji Disu has not banned Nigerians from recording police officers while they perform their duties in public.

The Force said the IGP’s concern is instead the misuse of police recordings, particularly when footage is deliberately created to ridicule, provoke or turn police encounters into social media skits and entertainment.

The Force New Media Officer, Aliyu Giwa, made the clarification in a series of posts on X on Saturday following public criticism of Disu’s recent comments on citizens filming police officers.

Giwa said the IGP’s position had been misunderstood, stressing that the police were not seeking to shield officers from accountability or prevent citizens from exercising their rights.

“The IGP’s concern is not to shield Police officers from accountability or deny citizens their rights,” Giwa said.

He explained that Disu was specifically concerned about the misuse of recordings, including situations where officers are allegedly provoked, ridiculed, filmed for entertainment or subjected to unnecessary intrusion while carrying out their duties.

Giwa urged Nigerians to distinguish between responsible documentation of police activities and deliberately exploiting encounters with officers for social media content.

According to him, legitimate recordings can serve both citizens and police officers by providing evidence when misconduct is alleged and helping to protect officers against false accusations.

“As a public institution, the Police must remain open to legitimate scrutiny. Evidence is essential when an officer acts improperly. Similarly, responsible recording can protect officers from false allegations and support investigations,” he said.

The police spokesman, however, maintained that being in uniform does not completely remove an officer’s right to dignity and privacy.

“However, wearing the uniform does not remove an officer’s right to dignity or privacy,” Giwa said.

The controversy followed comments by Disu during a recent engagement with the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) at the Force Headquarters in Abuja.

The IGP had expressed concern about the increasing practice of Nigerians recording police officers, particularly when such encounters are subsequently used to create social media skits.

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Disu described the practice as “very, very demoralising” for police officers but acknowledged that citizens have the right to record officers performing their duties in public.

The IGP urged Nigerians to exercise restraint and avoid turning police officers into entertainment content.

“We are not saying they cannot exercise their rights of recording officers in the public places while doing their jobs,” Disu said.

“But they should put restraints and not turn our police officers to content for their skits or anything,” he added.

His comments generated debate among lawyers, human rights advocates and other Nigerians, with some arguing that recording police activities in public is an important tool for police accountability and transparency.

Giwa subsequently rejected the interpretation that the police were opposed to recording officers generally.

Responding to an X user who suggested that police officers should instead be equipped with body cameras, Giwa said the IGP’s comments were about misuse rather than a blanket restriction on recording.

“While you are allowed to interpret it as you see fit, the message from the IGP was concerning the misuse of recordings, not a general rejection of legitimate documentation or accountability,” he said.

Giwa also disclosed that body cameras were part of discussions around modern and accountable policing, noting that the technology could protect both officers and members of the public.

“Body cameras are, in fact, part of the broader conversation about modern, accountable policing, and they can protect both citizens and officers,” he said.

The debate has also been linked to a recent Federal High Court judgment affirming Nigerians’ right to record police officers while they perform their duties in public.

The court, sitting in Warri, Delta State, ruled on March 17, 2026, in a fundamental rights case involving lawyer Maxwell Nosakhare Uwaifo.

The judgment affirmed the right of citizens to record, photograph and document police officers carrying out their duties in public spaces.

The court also addressed the conduct of police officers towards citizens who record them, reinforcing the importance of protecting constitutional rights while police officers carry out law-enforcement functions.

The judgment has since become an important reference point in the debate over citizens’ right to film police officers and the limits of that right.

The NBA has similarly maintained that citizens should be able to document police activities in public, while recognising that officers are also entitled to protection from unnecessary intrusion into their private lives.

NBA President Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya recently backed the principle of recording police officers while they are performing public duties and called for clearer rules defining the boundaries between legitimate documentation and inappropriate intrusion.

Giwa said the issue should not be framed as a confrontation between the police and citizens or as a dispute between the IGP and the NBA.

“Therefore, the conversation should not be framed as Police versus the public or the IGP versus the NBA,” he said.

He said the focus should instead be on finding a balance between accountability and responsibility, transparency and privacy, and citizens’ rights and the professional discharge of police duties.

The Force New Media Officer also urged Nigerians to discuss the issue without resorting to insults or inflammatory language.

He said both citizens and the police ultimately had a shared interest in building a more professional police institution and creating a safer Nigeria.

Giwa further argued that technology should be used responsibly rather than treated as a threat to law enforcement.

“In the digital age, the solution is not to fear the camera. Instead, we should use technology responsibly, uphold professionalism, and let truth, rather than social media narratives, define the conversation,” he said.

“The camera should not weaken the institution. Also, institutions should not fear legitimate scrutiny. Both must ultimately serve the truth, justice, and the Nigerian people,” he added.

The latest clarification means that the Nigeria Police Force is not imposing a general ban on recording police officers. Instead, the Force is seeking to discourage recordings that allegedly provoke, ridicule or exploit officers for entertainment while maintaining that legitimate documentation can support accountability, investigations and the protection of both citizens and police personnel.

The debate is likely to continue as the police, legal practitioners and civil society groups consider clearer guidelines for balancing the right to record police officers with privacy, dignity and the need to avoid obstructing police operations.