Barely over a week ago, news broke that some officers attached to the Lagos State Police command turned down a gratification offer of half a million naira from some suspected thieves.

According to the spokesman of the command Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the five suspects who were apprehended between Volks Bus Stop and Iyana Iba at 3 am on Sunday, April 11, 2021, had in their possession some pieces of 25mm iron rods, one nozzle, one gas cylinder and a Ford bus.

These items were stolen from the China Construction Engineering Company (CCEC) and the Police have since contacted the CCEC management to notify them of the interception.

In a 'saner' clime, this kind of development would not even have made the news, after all the whole essence of having a policing system is so that lives and properties can be protected, and nobody should be extolled for simply doing what is required of them.

However, considering the recent history of Nigerian police officers conducts and their notoriety for extortion, begging and general bad behaviour, one may be compelled to applaud the courage of these noble officers in the face of such temptation.

In a country where police officers in daylight killings have shot motorcycle riders and commercial bus drivers because of 100 naira bribe, I will leave to everyone's imagination what could have transpired at 3 am when those suspects were accosted.

Barely a month ago, a similar development was recorded in Kano.

Two police officers were gifted N1 million by the Kano State Consumer Protection Agency.

The duo while on duty with the Kano State Consumer Protection Taskforce had rejected a bribe offer of the same amount made by a suspected dealer of expired products.

The officers, acting upon intelligence, stormed a warehouse facility where expired products worth billions of naira were stashed. The owner of the expired products presented them the mouthwatering offer but the officers turned it down and got him arrested.

This exemplary conduct really impressed the Chairman of the task force, Mr Bappa Dan’Agundi who later presented the officers to the state Commissioner of Police for proper commendation.

In another recent event, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) returned the sum of N716, 800 to the family of an accident victim.

The money belonging to late Mrs Oparaocha was recovered by FRSC officers at the scene of an auto-crash which occurred along the Onitsha-Owerri Expressway.

FRSC contacted the deceased's relatives through her mobile phone and handed the money over to them after a thorough vetting.

While there have been other related feats by various security agencies in the past, one can still make a valid argument that these sort of incidents are few and far between, thereby representing an insignificant percentage of laudable efforts recorded by our men in uniform.

Historically, Nigerian security agencies, both military and para-military, have fallen short of minimum performance expectations, particularly in their dealings with civilian population.

The previous atrocities of Nigeria police officers ranging from forced extortion, extrajudicial killings, harassment, illegal arrest and detention to mention a few are well documented. The image of the force has suffered a quantum degree of deserved bastardisation as a result.

On several occasions, the military has also come under severe reprimand due to the unprofessional conducts by some of its officers.

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Everywhere you look, it always seems as if every Nigerian law enforcement officer, as against doing their constitutionally assigned duty, is more interested in making the citizens' life and living miserable.

From immigration officers scheming to shake you down at the airports, to their counterparts in the FRSC looking to charge motorists for trumped-up offences, Nigerians don't feel at ease anytime they have to deal with our men in uniform.

In light of the forgoing, recognising the professionalism of officers who have distinguished themselves in the line of duty and rewarding them accordingly may not be completely out of place.

If properly managed, such gesture could spell a dawn of behavioural change amongst our security agents.

While monetary compensation is commendable, however, the government should put in place, a clearly defined performance appraisal mechanism that doesn't leave rewarding outstanding officers solely to the whims and caprices of their superiors.

Appropriate and timely promotion, provision of other incentives including housing, equipment and general welfare will help to inject confidence and jack up moral in the system.

As we continue to acknowledge the gallantry of decent officers, the government should strive to create an environment that throws up more of their likes.