They mark the tension, society faces in its war against crime, and in its relationship with those employed by the state to keep it safe. At a national level, one would expect the relationship between the law enforcement and the public to be a cordial one. The coercive powers of the state, it would be expected, would never be felt by the law-abiding citizen, but only, those who contrive to hurt the public interest. Sadly, that is not always the case.
Law enforcement institutions are generally appropriated by the politicians for the sustenance of the preferred political order, and for the generation of preferred political outcomes. Our Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) are perfect cases in point on how, law enforcement agencies can veer totally off track, and sycophantically pant after political handlers either as a self-induced institutional calamity, or at the instance of those who hold political power. The consequences are dire to those at the wrong end of the stick, and it is generally, the very public they are contracted to protect.
