Public Perceptions of Nigeria Police Monetary Bribery in Awka, Nigeria
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Walden University ScholarWorks Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies Collection 2021 Public Perceptions of Nigeria Police Monetary Bribery in Awka, Nigeria Benjamin Chukwuka Nnadozie Walden University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations Part of the Public Administration Commons This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies Collection at ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Walden University College of Social and Behavioral Sciences This is to certify that the doctoral dissertation by Benjamin Chukwuka Nnadozie has been found to be complete and satisfactory in all respects, and that any and all revisions required by the review committee have been made. Review Committee Dr. Ernesto Escobedo, Committee Chairperson, Public Policy and Administration Faculty Dr. Raj Singh, Committee Member, Public Policy and Administration Faculty Dr. Meena Clowes, University Reviewer, Public Policy and Administration Faculty Chief Academic Officer and Provost Sue Subocz, Ph.D. Walden University 2021 Abstract Public Perceptions of Nigeria Police Monetary Bribery in Awka, Nigeria By Benjamin Chukwuka Nnadozie Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfullment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Public Policy and Administration Walden University February 2021 Abstract The Nigerian police are often perceived by the Nigerian public as a very corrupt institution due to reports in the media and direct experiences of police brutality, extortion, injustice, and especially monetary bribery. The refusal to pay monetary bribes to the police has led to loss of lives and a lack of trust in the police. The purpose of this study was to investigate public perceptions of police monetary bribery in Awka in Anambra State, Nigeria. The conceptual framework was Novak et al.’s dynamic social impact theory. The research questions focused on understanding how the public perceived police monetary bribery and how these perceptions influenced their attitude and involvement in police accountability mechanisms and democratic principles. The inquiry was made using a qualitative case study design. The purposive sampling technique was used to select a total of 66 Awka residents as study participants. An interview protocol was used to elicit exhaustive responses from the participants, which were processed using QDA Miner and analyzed according to qualitative content analysis. Findings show that participants saw police monetary bribery as ubiquitous, customary, beggarly, and extorting; systemic; indiscriminating of criminals and non-criminals; and to receipt to police services. This study's recommendations emphasize the need to raise the Nigerian government and the people’s (a) awareness of how police bribery continues to degrade national and global perceptions of the country and (b) embrace of democratic principles. Hence, a total overhaul of the police institution's ethical foundation may alleviate the monetary bribery culture and all forms of corruption by the Nigeria Police leading to positive social change. Public Perceptions of Nigeria Police Monetary Bribery in Awka, Nigeria By Benjamin Chukwuka Nnadozie Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfullment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Public Policy and Administration Walden University February 2021 Dedication To my wife, Helen Nnadozie, for her unflinching support in bearing most of our family's financial burden and my two unassuming sons, Chukwuka and Chiaghana, for their love and support. I also wish to dedicate this scholarship quest to my late parents, Sir and Lady Daniel Nnadozie for, their love. And to my benefactor Chief Ezediorama from Nkanu, Enugu State, who encouraged me to travel to the U.S. without whom this Doctor of Philosophy would not have been possible because that was his wish. Acknowledgments With a heart filled with gratitude, I wish to thank God, for his grace and faithfulness that saw me throughout this academic endeavor. My profound thanks go to Dr. Ernesto Escobedo for accepting being my chairperson, for his steadfast support and unwavering encouragements without which my attaining Ph.D. would be just a dream. I am also grateful to Dr. Raji Singh, who stepped in at the right time as a committee member to boost my morale and guiding me back on the right track and dissertation progress ensured. I owe many appreciations to the participants who made themselves freely available for interviews despite the study's challenging nature. I will forever be indebted to them for their sacrifice to believe that the phenomenon is deemed worthy. A special thanks to Mr. Bello Afeez Akinkunmi (young guru), who was with me from day one, assisting and giving countless and unmeasurable feedback throughout my dissertation journey. I acknowledge the support and contribution of Ms. Christy Odumegwu. She started her Ph.D. journey simultaneously as mine but always willing and able to help in any way especially proofreading my manuscript. The doctoral journey can sometimes be lonely and requires intuitive people going through the same process. I also would like to thank Dr. Christopher Ibekwe for his contribution, especially during the participant's selection and data collection. To my wife, for financial support, endurance, and believing in me, and to my son's for their inspiration, I wish that I may have inspired them to understand that quest of knowledge bars no age, and with determination and resilience, success is imminent. Table of Contents List of Tables .......................................................................................................................v Chapter 1: Introduction to the Study................................................................................... 1 Background ................................................................................................................... 8 Problem Statement ...................................................................................................... 10 Purpose of the Study ................................................................................................... 15 Research Questions ..................................................................................................... 16 Theoretical/Conceptual Framework............................................................................ 16 Nature of the Study ..................................................................................................... 18 Definitions................................................................................................................... 20 Assumptions................................................................................................................ 25 Scope and Delimitations ............................................................................................. 26 Limitations .................................................................................................................. 28 Significance................................................................................................................. 30 Summary ..................................................................................................................... 31 Chapter 2: Literature Review ............................................................................................ 34 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 34 Literature Search Strategy........................................................................................... 35 Conceptual Framework ............................................................................................... 36 Dynamic Social Impact Theory in Previous Studies ............................................ 39 Criticism of Dynamic Social Impact Theory ........................................................ 40 Relevance of Dynamic Social Impact Theory ...................................................... 41 i Literature Review Related to Key Variables and/or Concepts ................................... 42 Impact of Police Corruption on Public Perceptions of the Police ........................ 42 Public Perceptions of Police Monetary Bribery and Attitudes to and Involvement in Community Policing ........................................................ 45 Strengths and Weaknesses in the Studies ............................................................. 48 The Role of the Police in the Provision of Security and Dispensation of Justice........................................................................................................ 51 Police Corruption as a Global Problem ................................................................ 52 Definitions of Corruption and Police Monetary Bribery ...................................... 55 The Nature of Police Monetary Bribery in Nigeria .............................................. 59 Public Perceptions of Police Monetary Bribery and Attitudes to and Involvement in Police Accountability Mechanisms ................................. 63 Public Perceptions of Police Monetary Bribery and Attitudes to and Involvement in the Advancement of Democratic Principles ...................