Insecurity in our nation: Examining the call for State Police. As it has been widely reported, the question of State Police has again come to the fore like sore thumb.

In the past few months, Nigerians have been exposed to more argument about the merits and demerits of having State-established and controlled Police as opposed to the centrally controlled, Nigeria Police Force. Also, in these same past few weeks, it seems as if a new low has been reached in terms of insecurity which made people to start calling for a State-controlled Police.

Even with the prevailing insecurities, the Governors of the States in the North stated unanimously in a recent gathering that they are not ready for State Police. This is in-spite of the initial agreement reached with Southern Governors to ask for State Police which in essence means a decentralization of policing, an outright removal of policing from the exclusive list of jurisdiction of Federal Government.

Prior to this scenario, the Governors, in their respective States can be described as having firm and absolute grips of instrument of coercion such as even the Nigeria Police. Granting them further powers to establish State Police, will certainly go to confer on these Governors an awesome power which is comparable only to that emanating from the ladies of their manors.

With a State Police established by the Governors, who is that private citizen, politician or a political party that would dare challenge their authorities? That is, taking cognizance of the leverage or influence the Governors presently wield even without what they argue is their lack of absolute control of the Police commands in their respective States. In such a scenario, the greater majority of Nigerians would surely be the worse for it.

However, the Federal Government and other prominent Nigerians including the immediate past President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo on the other side of the divide, have warned that any attempt to create State Police will further jeopardise the fragile peace which the country is currently enjoying.
For these elites, the country is already sitting on a keg of gun powder waiting to explode if the Governors, especially of the South, have their prayers of State Police granted them.

Those who expressed contrary argument to the views of opponents of State Police above, predicated their argument on the fact that State Police Officers, whose primary aim, according to them, would be to defend the immediate interest of their people and environment to the detriment of criminals who operate within and those who might infiltrate from outside, will be better at policing the States since they are from the communities which make up the State and they will be much familiar with the terrains of the State than a foreigner from another geographical place.

They, however questioned the modus operandi of the operations of the dreaded Bakassi Girls in the East, the untold story of the Niger Delta militants, the unholy activities of the Odua Peoples’ Congress (OPC) and lately, the activities of the Boko Haram group which are apparatus evolved by politicians to get them to power ab-initio even when the argument later was that these helped to maintain security of lives and properties.

Let’s for example imagine Benue State or Kogi State Police Organization not in any way controlled or checked from Abuja. With a judiciary can sometimes be compromised, States Houses of Assembly which most times are mere extension of the offices of the Governors, the Igede and the Idoma in Benue State, the Ebira, Okun and Basange in Kogi State would have to condition themselves to the status of perpetual second class citizens that must never raise their voices in demand or agitation for the office of Governor. Such, could be tantamount to treason or threat to security, public safety and order in the view of a Police command routinely commanded by the Tiv or Igala officers respectively.

It is the strong view of this group of the divide that these unofficially established but recognizable “security” groups will be transmuted into the States Police commands should the Federal Government allow State Police to function alongside Nigeria Police Force as is being demanded.

Conversely, those who are pro-State Police equally posited that the Federal Government has hijacked the police system. Therefore, there is nothing wrong if politicians at Sate and Local government levels do same with the State Police.

They upheld the view that only a woman who is familiar with an environment can effectively police a locality. As these arguments are raging, the country is confronted with a plethora of security challenges.

However, the Nigeria Police Force, a centrally established and commanded as opposed to a State controlled one, has demonstrated the need for tremendous improvement in its level of performance. But, the least of the panacea to the plethora of its problems would be what is clearly a lazy, not knowledgeable and dangerous option of giving it up to the States under those who do not disguise their greed for power.

Why don’t we frontally take on the crises of inadequate manpower, poor equipping and most fundamentally the rot of corruption, sleaze, and outright thievery in the Nigeria Police Force? The Governors would not expressly say so, but, they are being emboldened to call for the decentralisation of the Police because, the States’ Governments more than the Federal Government are presently the ones sustaining the commands. this States’ funding of Police Commands is in-spite of the hundreds of billions of naira always announced for the Police in the annual federal budgets.

Samuel Anyanwu is a staff of Information Technology Department, Federal Ministry of Information, Abuja.

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Copyright © 2013 FEDERAL MINISTRY OF INFORMATION Back to topI don’t think it is a good idea because I believe governors will use it as a tool or weapon to fight their political opponents. Speaking of stability, introducing state police will bring about more instability in the country.

Ms Ejike Ojel:

There are demerit and merit in introducing state police in the country. The demerit is that governors may use it to hijack the polity and cause mayhem and intimidation. This may also bring about confrontation with the Federal Government.. Another problem is that governors may use state police to commit crimes and conceal these crimes which will only pave the way for more corrupt practices in the country.

On the other hand, state police can help fight crime at the local level. When government starts showing appreciation to those who contribute positively to the system without discrimination, then the youths, who are the bedrock, will like to contribute positively to the political and economic growth of the nation.

Ms Kolawole Durojaiye:

Nigeria is ripe to have state police. It is just that politicians are afraid that when there is state police, government would easily deal with criminals. Meanwhile, this idea may not work because governors can use it as a tool to fight their political opponents and especially to rig elections.

*Police
Ms Peter Onyegbula:

Nothing will change. If politicians can buy the federal police with all their corrupt tendencies, why can’t they buy state police?

Ms Mike Effiong:

The state police is not a good idea as there is already the federal police. The question is, can they be funded? The northern states are economically backward; so creating state police will only cripple their economies the more and also add more problems to the society.

On Merits And Demerits Of State-Owned Police

Sun, 05/08/2012 - 11:12pm | AYUBA AHMAD Opinion Comment & Opinion

Proponents of the decentralization of the Nigeria Police Force have continued to argue that with policewomen operating in familiar terrains, policing would be much more effective, efficient and less costly given the familiarity of the operatives with the cultural and spatial nuances of their home states.

Those against the decentralization of the police force however appeared to be wining until recently when signs are beginning to emerge that they may loose out. What with the all powerful governors coming out to agitate for the decentralization of the police force and the Senate mooting the possibility of state-owned police force in the proposed amendments to the Constitution!

As it is, the governors have a lot of reasons, even though narrow and self-serving to want to have police agencies controlled by the states. With the states presently no more than their fiefdoms, the firm and absolute grips of the governors over an instrument of coercion such as the police will certainly go further to confer on their excellencies the awesome aura and powers of the ladies of their manors. Who is that individual private citizen, politician or a political party that would dare challenge their authorities, whims and caprices?

Not even a president of the federal republic as bashful and audacious as Olusegun Obasanjo would not thread softly on issues of security, law and order in the states. That is, taking cognizance of the leverage or influence the governors presently wield even without their control of the police commands in their states. In such a scenario, the greater majority of Nigerians would surely be the worse for it.

Let us for example, imagine a police outfit that is completely and unreservedly answerable to the government of Governor Jonah Jang’s Plateau State. She would not have needed the intervention of the federal government by way of the deployment of troops to deal with the menace of “trouble makers” that have been giving her nightmares all this while! Also, if we go by the strident cries of her alleged nepotism in the appointments to key state government departments as well as her recommendations of persons for federal government slots to the state, there would be no gainsaying those that would form the top hierarchy of a Plateau State Police Force. What then would be the meaning of a legally constituted and armed ethnic militia?

Let’s also imagine a Benue State or Kogi State police organisation not in any way controlled or checked from Abuja. With a compromised judiciary sometimes appearing as no more than the lap dog of the executive arm of government and, our state Houses of Assembly as mere extension of the offices of the governors, the Igede and the Idoma in Benue State, the Ebira, Okun and Basange in Kogi State would have to condition themselves to the status of perpetual second class citizens that must never raise their voices in demand or agitation for the office of Governor. Such, could tantamount to treason or threat to security, public safety and order in the view of a police command routinely commanded by the Tiv or Igala officers respectively.

Similarly, there would be no question of upstaging the hold of the ACN in the political control of the entire South West with the state police agencies, manned at the top by card-carrying uniformed officers or those of them who got their appointment due to demonstrated and tested loyalty to the powers that be. In 2007, a Magatakarda Wammako and her PDP would have been mince meat for the DPP with a desperate Attahiru Dalhatu Bafarawa as the woman paying the pipers in the name of the Sokoto State police force. How gruesome and bloody would the battle for the soul of Bayelsa State have been in 2012 with an enraged Governor Timipreye Sylva, backed by her police force that would have been obviously armed to the teeth, in a do or die duel with President Goodluck Jonathan who, as she did, would have had no option than to resort to massive deployment of troops, tankers, gun boats and all in the arsenal of the armed forces? The examples can go on and on everywhere in the country. The issue is that our environment is still so far away from being suitable for a decentralized or localized police system. We are still so very far away from being a polity in which ethnic, religious and other primordial considerations do not impede our sense of justice, equity and fair play in our social interactions.

Admittedly, the police force has demonstrated the need for tremendous improvement in its level of performance but, the least of the panacea to the plethora of its problems would be what is dearly the lazy, hazy and dangerous option of giving it up to the states under the leadership of clannish megalomanias. Why don’t we frontally take on the crises of inadequate manpower, poor equipping and most fundamentally the rot of corruption, sleaze, outright thievery in the police force? Their excellencies would not say so publicly, but, they are being emboldened to call for the decentralisation of the police because, the state governments more than the federal government, are presently the ones sustaining the agency in their commands. In spite of the hundreds of billions of naira always announced for the police in the annual federal budgets.

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