No, Nigerian government is not planning to remove pockets from police uniforms to curb bribery
IN SHORT: According to several Facebook posts, the Nigerian government has announced plans to remove pockets from the police uniforms to curb bribery. But there is no evidence to support this claim.
Dozens of Facebook posts claim that Nigeria's federal government has announced plans to remove pockets from the police uniforms to curb bribery.
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Most of the posts include a graphic with a photo of Bala Ciroma, the deputy inspector general of police, displaying a police uniform. The graphic reads: "FG to remove pockets from police uniforms to tackle bribery, says FG."
Some users said the move was "part of a broader reform effort aimed at enhancing professionalism, accountability, and community trust within the Nigeria Police Force".
The claim also appears here and here. (Note: See more instances at the end of this report.)
Corruption in the Nigerian police is well-documented, with many reported incidents of extortion and bribery.
A 2016 survey published by the National Bureau of Statistics found the prevalence of bribery was 46.4% among police officers. The police took the most bribes of all public officials in Nigeria.
Although the 2023 edition of the survey was more nuanced, bribery was still more common among police officers than among other public officials. The survey found that the prevalence of bribery was 46% among male police officers and 28% among female officers.
But has the Nigerian government announced a plan to remove pockets from police uniforms to prevent officers from taking bribes? We checked.
No evidence to support this
Reverse image searches revealed that the photo circulating with the claim was taken on 3 September 2024 at the unveiling of new uniforms and kits for supernumerary officers, also known as spy police.
Spy police officers are private individuals who have been trained by the Nigeria Police Force and appointed on a temporary basis to perform specific security functions, such as protecting individuals and public property. Unlike regular police officers, they are paid by the organisations that engage them.
We searched for the claim on Google and on the websites of the Nigeria Police Force, the Police Service Commission and the Ministry of Police Affairs, but found no evidence to support it.
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However, we found evidence that the claim has been circulating for years. A post on Nairaland, a Nigerian online discussion forum, dated 18 July 2017, makes the same claim. It includes a URL which is now broken.
There was no evidence to support the claim that the Nigerian government was planning to remove pockets from police uniforms to curb bribery in 2017, and there is still none in 2025.
The same claim was found here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
