EVALUATING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF COMMUNITY POLICING STRATEGIES IN MITIGATING SECURITY CHALLENGES IN BAUCHI METROPOLIS, BAUCHI STATE, NIGERIA
Aliyu Ibrahim Shehu , Hindatu Yerima Maigari and Yusuf Abdu Yusuf
Volume 14 Issue 1
Abstract
Insecurity remains one of the most pressing governance challenges confronting urban centres in Nigeria, and Bauchi Metropolis is no exception. Rising incidents of armed robbery, kidnapping, burglary, and communal violence have exposed the limitations of conventional, centralised policing and have renewed scholarly and policy interest in community-based alternatives. This study is drawn from a broader qualitative case-study investigation into community policing in Bauchi Metropolis and is restricted to the first objective of that study: to evaluate the effectiveness of the community policing strategies implemented in Bauchi Metropolis, specifically by the Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN) Bauchi State Command and the Baushe Hunter Security and Patrol Team. Adopting an interpretivist research philosophy and a case-study design, data were generated through in-depth interviews with twenty purposively sampled participants drawn from the Nigeria Police Force, the VGN, the Baushe Hunter Security and Patrol Team, and community leaders, and were analysed thematically. The paper is anchored on Routine Activity Theory, Social Disorganization Theory, and Principal–Agent Theory, which together provide a multi-level lens for interpreting how situational, structural, and institutional factors shape community policing effectiveness. Findings indicate that the collaboration between formal police structures and community-based security actors has produced measurable, though uneven and fragile, improvements in crime prevention, early detection of criminal activity, intelligence sharing, response time, and public trust. Effectiveness, however, varies considerably across neighbourhoods, being strongest where social cohesion and pre-existing trust are high, and weakest where social ties are fragmented. The study concludes that community policing in Bauchi Metropolis has achieved a moderate, context-dependent level of effectiveness that, while encouraging, falls short of its full potential because of resource, training, and coordination constraints. Recommendations are offered for strengthening this effectiveness through sustained institutional support. Keywords: Community Policing, Effectiveness, Security Challenges, Bauchi Metropolis, Vigilante Group of Nigeria, Baushe Hunter Security and Patrol Team.
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