The POLICE are ROBBING US

This past few weeks met students of the Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta sleeping with one eye opened, not because they have a disorder or because they were tempted by the "eye catching" side attractions in their apartments (even though there's no such thing), but for the unwelcomed guests that's been making their visits a tradition, i had a conversation with one of the students who hosted these guests, she recalled that she was shaken and rendered mute by the sudden presence of these guests, just like the holy book had said about the coming of christ, these young men as we later came to find out from their benefactors, came in the dead of the night armed to the teeth with cutlasses, axe and all sorts, while the students were busy living out their second lives in the dream world, their dreams were cut short by the awkward reality of the august visitor sitting right across the room with his fingers across his lips signaling SILENCE!
These visits have become nearly a daily routine, everyone now lives in fear, trying to come to terms with the reality of who would be the next host. The nights turned to day as students keep watch all night and the ones who knew God from a distance begin to draw really close to him, the fear in the hearts of the ladies is of rape, the gentlemen seem to be the more confident group but they also fear for their most priced gadgets and the little cash they have with them. The paranoia worsens such that the flap of a butterfly's wings was enough to send everyone into the innermost parts of their apartments, bolting the doors behind. An acquitance was narrating her experience to me and i couldn't help laughing, though she was also laughing at the time she was narrating her ordeal , it wasn't as funny when it happened, she recalled hearing the sounds and thinking to herself that it must be the men at the window, then she she added that she saw figures that looks like men, and she held her bible close to her chest and started praying, i was rolling on the floor laughing by now.
Another incident i heard of was that of a student who locked himself in the toilet on the slightest indication that the guests had arrived, he left all his personal effects and possesion out in the room, the laptop, phone, wallet all on the table.  Luckily, the guests overlooked our friends inability to host them properly by giving them a beffitting welcome, they let themselves in and as you guessed it, met the peace offering on the table, our dear friend called out from the toilet that they should take as much as they can, but just leave him alone. I couldnt contain my laughter when i heard, i never realised how hospitable students can be, how close we could draw near to God and our capacity to ignite the rarest form of humor from our misfortunes.
Well personally i have not being visited, probably because i dont know how to play a good host or because i have a terribly bad sleeping habit and once i'm on the bed, it's only my alarm clock that can revive me. I tried imagining a senario where these said guests find their way into my room, make themselves at home, search all over the room to find nothing...yes i mean nothing and then frustrated they whisper "guy!!!", i reply sleepily "no carry my charger ohh" then i turn the other direction on the bed and off i go... now they look around see the charger and the pathetic excuse i have for a phone, irritated they drop off one of the good offerings they collected from thier previous expeditions and quietly they leave me be helping themselves out.. .yes...that would just be the best... then i smile and suddenly i sense a cold metal on my skin, i open my eyes to see it was all a dream and the real guests are here and it didnt look like they are in the mood to drop anything other than hard punches and a really displeasing beat down... the rest is left to your imagination.
But while we have a good laugh amidst all this, some elements of truth still creep out of the humor and i wonder where the police were? A few days ago a hostel not far from mine was visited and in the usual Nigerian police routine, the cops arrived hours after our  guests had left, then beefed up security in the area, secured the perimeter and began to take statements, i have nothing against their procedures or their protocols but their timing? let's not go there, they show up at the wrong time, arrest the wrong people for the wrong reasons and collect money for the wrong reasons.
i have cause to believe the police have robbed us of our sleep, our safety and definitely our rights, the police have the core responsibilty of protecting and serving us, they are supposed to be on alert, on the call and we should be able to sleep with assurance that our lives and properties are safe, but even the average police officer is more afraid for his life than some of the students, the government employed a bunch of amateurs and gave them  ridiculous uniforms with the sole responsiblity of directing traffic, in the name of check points, collecting little bit of hand outs here and there with little or no tactical knowledge of how to protect and secure lives and property, our school also followed suite in the same manner, with our able mango security. I cannot confidently say that even in the school there is security, unless of course you are refering to those men you see at the busstops and colleges who wear yellow shirts on green pants a.k.a mango.
I should inevitably state here that i love the police and i love my FUNAAB, but i must confess my love for my school or the police has not in any way influenced my trust in the system as pertaining to security. As far as I'm concerned a police truck is not the definition of security and if i can see police officers drinking even while in uniform i wonder what law they would enforce to that effect, it's the little things that matter, if every police officer would think of the citizens as their family and protect and serve like a player in the community then i'm certain that the war againt curruption is half won, if our law enforcers will stop negotiating with offenders and do their job, our streets will be safe again, our nights will be peaceful and both eyes can finally get equal ammount of sleep and maybe what you imagined would be of me if i was visited would only be a scene in my dream that ended with the police coming in to save the day and i'ld wake up to another beautiful day in a beautiful country where the police is my friend.