IPCB to Police the Police

As a result of concerns by citizens on who actually is policing to the Police, the Independent Police Complaints Board of Sierra Leone (IPCB-SL) was gazetted in July 2013 by the Sierra Leone Police Council under section 158 of the Constitution of Sierra Leone, Act No.6 of 1991 to investigate the death of any person while in the custody of the Police, a fatal road accident in which a Police vehicle is involved, a shooting incident resulting in deaths or injuries, assault or wounding caused by a Police Officer, allegations of misconduct involving a Police Officer of the rank of Superintendent or higher, any matter involving misconduct by the Police referred to the Inspector General of Police which he thinks an independent investigation into will be in the best interest of the public, any matter or incident which it thinks the action or inaction of the Police is likely to impact significantly on the confidence of the people in the Police or any matter whether remote or otherwise, which gave cause for an investigation to be conducted.

The IPCB shall advise the Sierra Leone Police on ways in which incidents involving the Police can be avoided or eliminated.

It has been revealed that during the drafting of the Bill recognition was taken of the Standard for External Police Oversight Bodies recommended by the United Nations in a study on Police Oversight Mechanisms by the Special Rapporteur on Extra Judicial, Summary or Arbitrary Execution, Philip Alston in 2010 and the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (2005 Report) titled, ‘Police Accountability: too important to neglect, too urgent to delay.’

In operationalising the IPCB, the Board in collaboration with the Africa Policing Civilian Oversight Forum (APCOF) has worked on a number of organisational, regulatory and procedural issues that will govern its functions and performance almost completed with the Communications Strategy and Monitoring and Evaluation Framework in progress.

It could be recalled that Government prioritised rebuilding state institutions with particular attention to the security sector after the country’s decade long war, and although public perception of the security sector particularly the Police have improved but surveys still indicates a lack of public trust in the Police.

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