Dreadlocks Policy: Governor Bago’s Approach Misses Mark in Tackling Insecurity in Niger State

Dreadlocks Policy

Well, well, well, just when you think you’ve heard it all, Governor Umar Bago of Niger State decides that dreadlocks are the new face of crime in Minna.

Development Diaries reports that in the face of rising insecurity, Governor Bago has directed security agencies to arrest individuals wearing dreadlocks in Minna, the state capital.

Who needs data-driven policing when a hairstyle can apparently predict criminal tendencies?

One wonders what intelligence report concluded that dreadlocks, and not, say, poverty, unemployment, or weak institutions, are responsible for insecurity in the state.

Perhaps next, the government will issue arrest warrants for anyone caught wearing skinny jeans or listening to Afrobeats after 10pm.

This move is not only laughably misguided, it’s dangerous. It criminalises personal expression and identity, especially among young people, while doing absolutely nothing to address the actual roots of insecurity, such as banditry, poor intelligence gathering, and lack of coordination among security agencies.

Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) actually emphasises the rights to freedom from discrimination. This means that it protects against discrimination on the basis of a person’s appearance, among other factors.

The notion that arresting and shaving people with dreadlocks will make Minna safer is the kind of logic you get when policies are brewed in echo chambers rather than in boardrooms informed by evidence and stakeholder input.

If Governor Bago is truly committed to curbing insecurity, then his administration must focus on carrying out the right security measures.

Effective leadership is about building trust, not trampling on human rights or turning security agencies into fashion police.

You don’t solve a security problem by banning rasta hairstyles any more than you solve exam malpractice by arresting everyone who owns a pen.

So, dear Governor Bago, as the Chief Security Officer of Niger State, this is your moment to lead with sense and sensibility.

Scrap this policy, implement a coordinated, intelligence-driven security strategy that addresses the root causes of violence, engage the youth, and focus on solutions that will actually make your people sleep better at night.

Let’s leave people’s hair out of it, unless, of course, you’re planning to launch a state-owned barbershop franchise.

Photo source: Niger State

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