International Journal in Management and Social Science Volume 08 Issue 08, August 2020 ISSN: 2321-1784 Impact Factor: 6.319 Journal Homepage: http://ijmr.net.in, Email: irjmss@gmail.com Double-Blind Peer Reviewed Refereed Open Access International Journal 46 International Journal in Management and Social Science http://ijmr.net.in, Email: irjmss@gmail.com ANTHROPOLOGICAL APPRAISAL OF COMMUNITY POLICING IN NIGERIA: A DEVELOPMENTAL AND HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES. Akintola Ismail PhD. Department of Sociology And Anthropology Faculty Of Business and Social Sciences Baze University,Plot 686,Cadastral Zone C00, Kuchigoro, Behind National Judiciary Institute,Abuja. Abstract This paper has engaged in discussing the historical analysis of policing within the socio-cultural, economic and political context of pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial Nigeria. There were contemporary issues and challenges perceived to have been produced by these historical contexts and processes and these challenges have hindered the institutionalisation of robust relationship between the police and community in Nigeria. Policing does not operate in a vacuum and it is highly contingent upon political, social and economic context. There are structural and institutional conditions that influence the success of community policing implementation. Key words: Anthropology, Development, Community policing, police/community relationship, Crime, Conflict An overview of policing in Nigeria 1 Introduction A range of views has suggested that the concept and principle of community policing in terms of underlining philosophy and practice have been part and parcel of indigenous African people and the pre-colonial Nigeria cultures in particular. For example, Dambazau (2007:224) pointed out that the principles of community and community policing were not new to traditional African societies. He maintained that socio-cultural structures and patterns of behaviour in the forms of respect for elders, the appreciation of extended family system, consciousness of the traditional values and a sense of collective responsibility and security within the community all combined to provide instruments of policing. According to Dambazau‟s (2007) view, there is an understanding that prior to the coming of the colonialists to the countries in Africa, the black people in Africa were in control of their societies in terms of checking behavioural excesses among members. Correspondingly, positive or negative sanctions were applied where and when necessary to ensure that norms and values were preserved, an indication that traditional societies in Nigeria had their own ways of order maintenance. Consequently, investigation of police/community relationship pattern and the meaning attached to community policing by the stakeholders is to some extent dependent on examining previous policing features of the