Data were collected on questionnaires distributed to police personnel in five of the country's 21 states. Results revealed that they regard the NPF as an agent of the government and not as a service group for the public. As a result, they reported that they are answerable only to the Federal military government and to its subunits. Findings indicated that the problems of law enforcement and order maintenance in Nigeria are due partly to the way police personnel perceive the NPF, because their perceptions influence both how they view the public and the methods they use to enforce laws and maintain order in the streets. Findings indicated the need to change police organizational documents and to emphasize during the formal and informal socialization of police recruits that the police department is a service group for the public. Tables and 14 references (Author abstract modified)