By Ayo Kehinde
The Federal High Court of Nigeria sitting in Warri has affirmed that Nigerians have the constitutional right to record police officers while performing their duties in public.
It declares that no law prohibits citizens from filming law enforcement personnel during public operations.
Delivering judgement in suit number FHC/WR/CS/87/2025 on Tuesday, Justice H. A. Nganjiwa held that attempts by security operatives to stop, harass, or intimidate individuals for recording their activities amount to a violation of fundamental rights.
The court ruled that officers of the Nigeria Police Force must not arrest, threaten, or confiscate devices from citizens who are lawfully documenting police actions.
It further directed that all officers must wear clearly visible name tags and display their force numbers, particularly during stop-and-search operations and at checkpoints.
In the suit filed by Maxwell Nosakhare Uwaifo, the court awarded N5 million in damages for the violation of his fundamental rights and an additional N2 million as litigation costs, bringing the total compensation to N7 million.
Uwaifo had instituted the case as a public interest litigation against the Inspector-General of Police, the Nigeria Police Force, the Police Service Commission, and the Attorney-General of the Federation, challenging the legality of stop-and-search operations conducted by officers who failed to identify themselves.
He argued that efforts by police officers to prevent citizens from filming—through threats, harassment, or seizure of devices—breach Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression.
He also sought a perpetual injunction restraining law enforcement agencies from arresting or intimidating Nigerians who record police activities in public.
Justice Nganjiwa granted all the reliefs sought, emphasising that “anonymous policing,” where officers operate without proper identification or in mufti, is unconstitutional and fosters impunity.
Reacting to the judgement, Uwaifo described it as “far-reaching,” noting that it reinforces transparency, civil liberties, and accountability in policing.
Court records showed that the case arose from repeated encounters in which officers allegedly obstructed, threatened, and attempted to intimidate the applicant and others for recording public policing activities, including a May 2025 incident along the Benin–Warri axis.
The judgement comes amid persistent public concern over police misconduct, particularly during stop-and-search operations—issues that gained national attention following abuses linked to the now-disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad, which sparked the nationwide #EndSARS protests.
