The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) says it has commenced investigation into a viral video of a man who was dressed in its uniform while smoking shisha.
The internet was recently agog when the less than one-minute video surfaced online, with many Nigerians expressing their different views.
In the short clip, a middle-aged man, who was clad in police uniform, could be seen heavily smoking shisha, puffing out smokes intermittently in an undisclosed location.
But reacting in a statement on its social media pages on Sunday, Frank Mba, police spokesman, said investigation had already begun into the matter.
Mba said the investigation will examine, among other things, the true identity of the man as well as the authenticity of the clip.
He, however, said regardless of the outcome of the investigation, the video was not a reflection of the police as a law enforcement agency.
“The Nigeria Police Force has commenced investigations into the viral video showing a man wearing what appears to be a Nigeria Police ‘uniform’ smoking shisha,” the statement read.
“The investigation will amongst other things seek to forensically establish the authenticity of the video, the true identity of the man in the uniform – whether he is in fact a policeman, an impostor or an actor in a movie scene.
“However, while not being prejudicial to the ongoing investigations, it is necessary to state that the character exhibited by the man in the uniform is not a true reflection of who we are as a regimented law enforcement agency – our trainings, discipline, norms and tradition.”
