As Nigeria grapples with a surge in violent crimes, from mass abductions to targeted attacks on communities, the decades-long debate over state policing has resurfaced with renewed urgency.
Many Nigerians are now increasingly calling for a decentralized policing system they believe could respond more swiftly and effectively to the worsening security crisis.
DAILY POST reports that in the past few days, the country has witnessed a string of troubling incidents highlighting the fragility of its current security architecture.
We reported how gunmen abducted over 300 children from the St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools, Papiri in Niger State, a grim reminder of the Chibok incident in 2014.
In Kebbi, 25 girls from the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga, were kidnapped, and the vice principal was killed by gunmen.
Last week, three people were killed when worshippers were abducted by bandits during an attack on a parish of the Christ Apostolic Church, Eruku, Kwara State.
Also, on Sunday, the police confirmed the killing of five police officers in Bauchi State and the abduction of 12 female farmers in Borno State by bandits.
DAILY POST reports that Kebbi students and Kwara church members have since been released. However, the same can’t be said about the Niger schoolchildren.
These attacks, security analysts say, expose the limitations of Nigeria’s centralized police force.
Renewed calls for state police
Recently, South-West governors, under the aegis of the South-West Governors’ Forum, renewed their call for the creation of state police to tackle the security challenges bedeviling the region and the country in general.
The governors made the call after a closed-door meeting held on Monday in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
DAILY POST reported that the meeting had in attendance the forum’s Chairman and Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
Others included Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), Lucky Aiyedatiwa (Ondo), Biodun Oyebanji (Ekiti), and the host, Seyi Makinde (Oyo).
In the communiqué issued at the end, it was agreed that all six states would support coordinated operations, joint intelligence sharing, and rapid-response initiatives across Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, and Ekiti states.
The governors also emphasised that the establishment of state police “can no longer be delayed.”
Gov Sule backs Southwest push
Reacting to the call for establishment of state police in the country, Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, welcomed the renewed call by Southwest governors.
The governor noted that their position aligns with an earlier consensus reached by almost all state chief executives.
Speaking on Arise Television’s Prime Time programme on Tuesday, he explained that while the push for state police enjoys widespread support among governors, the National Assembly must still play its part by approving the necessary legislative framework.
Sule recalled that some lawmakers had publicly opposed the proposal in the past, stressing that the initiative “is not just a matter for the federal government or the governors,” but one that requires the buy-in of legislators.
The governor added that despite the existence of vigilante groups and joint security task forces across states, such arrangements remain inadequate compared to a fully established state police structure.
Sule maintained his support for the initiative, urging all stakeholders to work diligently toward actualising state police to boost security nationwide.
He said: “Well, yes, you see, the southwestern governors have made that statement, and we commend them for making that statement.
“But in reality, over six months ago, 35 out of the 36 governors already agreed and said that there should be state police. And you know, this is a matter that is also sitting with the National Assembly.
“I remember there was either your station or one of these other television stations where a member of the National Assembly came and was vehemently against the state police, you know, for reasons best known to him.
“So it’s not a matter just for the federal government or for the governors. It’s not a matter for the executive. It also involves, you know, the legislators. The members of the National Assembly actually have to also agree to this.
“So I think when the Southwest governors call on this, they are referring more to the Southwest governors agreeing to that, because the majority of us have already agreed, and that is the reason why we are already doing other things.
“We all have some vigilante groups. We have some of the other Joint Security Task Force, you know, and all those groups, we have them, but they are not going to be as effective as State Police. So I am also in agreement with them. We should work as hard as possible to ensure that we do have state police”.
It’s time for state police – Lagos APC
Similarly, the Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has thrown its weight in support for the call by South-West Governors urging President Bola Tinubu to expedite the establishment of State Police across the country.
The party in a statement on Tuesday described the demand as timely, logical and inevitable.
The APC insisted that only “enemies of peace” would oppose a reform designed to strengthen security at the community level.
“The security challenges facing the country require multi-layered solutions. Properly designed and professionally regulated State Police will bring security closer to the people, improve intelligence gathering and deter crime in real time.
“The security of our people is non-negotiable. The time for State Police is now,” the statement stated.
State police may fail – Analyst
Meanwhile, Public Affairs Analyst and Communications Specialist, Nduka Odo, has cautioned that establishing state police may not resolve Nigeria’s worsening security crisis unless accompanied by proper funding, training and genuine political will from both federal and state authorities.
Speaking in an interview on Tuesday, Odo said growing calls for state police reflect nationwide desperation to curb what he described as “seemingly unabated terrorism-inspired kidnapping,” including the abduction of babies and schoolchildren in their hundreds.
According to him, many Nigerians are understandably alarmed by the scale of the attacks, adding that if state policing can help mitigate the current wave of terrorism, “then let’s have it.”
However, he expressed strong reservations about the model being proposed, stressing that the root of Nigeria’s insecurity is not the location of the police headquarters but chronic under-training and under-funding of security personnel.
Odo warned that without honest commitment from leaders, state policing could become another expensive failure.
He said: “Yes, those raising voices on the matter of state police are doing so because they are searching for every means to curtail or stop the seemingly unabated terrorisminspired kidnapping in the country.
“Anyone with a living soul should be worried about what is going on in Nigeria. The kidnapping of babies, nursery and primary school pupils in hundreds. That is horrible.
“If the creation of state policing will mitigate the spate of terrorism we have today, then let’s have it.
“However, I have two folds of reservations about state police. The cause of rampant and uncontrolled insecurity in the country is not because of the location of the police headquarters.
“The Nigeria police are under-trained and under-funded. Without proper training, they’ll be ineffective. Without the right resources and equipment, they won’t be able to track and combat Terrorists.
“Therefore, if the state police will be undertrained and underfunded as the federal police are today, there will be no need to create state police in 36 states.
“Secondly, without the political willpower to fight terrorism honestly and earnestly, establishing state police will be a waste of resources and manpower. There’s a saying that ‘ala adighi mma bu uru ndi nze.’ (When there’s commotion and turmoil in the land, it’s to the benefit of the leaders). We saw police officers fighting one another at PDP headquarters.
“We saw different security agents battling one another when the FCT ministry clashed with the navy officer. You see, it’s about lack of professionalism that is affecting the one we have now.
“The leaders at the state levels still have the ears and hands of their police commissioners.
“They also have access to other security agents in the country and within their states. They can still secure their states against terrorists without state police.
“However, if the lack of willpower on the side of the FG is responsible for the failure of police to tackle terrorism, states should then have their own police systems.
“But they must properly train and fund their policing units and back them up with the appropriate political willpower to handle insecurity”.