Inspector-General of Police Olatunji Disu has urged Nigerians to exercise restraint when recording police officers, describing the indiscriminate filming of officers as “very, very demoralising” to the force.
Disu made the remarks during a meeting with the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association in Abuja, where he expressed concern that some Nigerians had begun recording police officers in situations beyond their official duties, including while eating at restaurants.
The IGP, however, acknowledged that citizens have a right to record police officers performing their duties in public. He urged Nigerians not to use such recordings to turn police encounters into social-media skits or entertainment.
The comments followed a March 17, 2026 judgment by the Federal High Court in Warri, Delta State, which affirmed the constitutional right of Nigerians to record police officers carrying out their duties in public spaces.
Justice Hyeladzira Nganjiwa, in the judgment, held that citizens could record police officers during stop-and-search operations and other public interactions for purposes including documenting and reporting their conduct.
The court also held that officers should wear visible identification, including their names and force numbers, while carrying out public duties.
The judgment further restrained police officers from harassing, intimidating or arresting citizens simply for recording their activities in public, or confiscating their devices for that reason.
The court awarded ₦5 million in damages over the violation of the applicant’s fundamental rights and a further ₦2 million in litigation costs.
The case was filed by lawyer Maxwell Nosakhare Uwaifo, who said he attempted to record an encounter with men he believed to be police officers during a stop-and-search operation along the Sapele Roundabout while travelling from Benin to Warri in May 2025.
According to the case, the officers allegedly threatened to arrest him and demanded that he stop recording. Uwaifo argued that citizens have a constitutional right to document the conduct of law enforcement officers performing public duties.
The court’s ruling established a distinction between legitimate documentation of police activity and physical interference with police operations. Citizens can record officers carrying out their duties in public, but the right does not extend to obstructing or interfering with lawful police operations.
Following the IGP’s recent comments, the Nigeria Police Force clarified that Disu was not seeking to ban citizens from recording officers.
Force New Media Officer Aliyu Giwa said the concern was about the misuse of recordings, particularly when police encounters are deliberately turned into entertainment or used to ridicule officers.
Giwa said responsible recording could benefit both citizens and police officers by providing evidence in cases of alleged misconduct while also helping to protect officers against false allegations.
The controversy has therefore centred on how the constitutional right should be exercised, rather than whether citizens possess the right to record police officers in public.
