Retired military Generals have said the establishment of state police is not an all in one solution to the nation’s security challenges but a necessary step.
Despite proliferation of security agencies, Nigerians have continuously suffered widespread insecurity with many languishing in terrorists’ captivity.
Nigeria currently has 42 security agencies but citizens are not safe in the face of widespread kidnapping, banditry and herders attacks on farming communities.
They said state police may suffer the same fate as the federal police if not properly established to address challenges of funding and sustainability.
According to the Generals, the success of the much-talked about state police will depend more on demonstrating the political will often lacking in the management of existing ones.
A former director of defence information, Maj. Gen. Chris Olukolade (rtd) says debates on state police were causing unnecessary delays since almost all stakeholders have agreed on its necessity.
He says all the stakeholders had agreed that state police is a desirable approach to solving the nation’s current security challenges.
“I think the debate is taking too long, and it is a desirable approach to solving our security issues in this country…The fact that the government of the day has bought into it and has taken it as a policy, what we should be working on now is the implementation. I agree with those who feel it’s taking too long to implement,” he said.
General Olukolade said rather than debating on the models, government should adopt state polic models available in other countries.
“Adopt models, and there are models all over the world. There are models that other countries have. This debate has been so long, before now, before this government came into being, there had been debates around the necessity for state policing. Now that government is convinced, and I believe the majority of states are equally convinced, regardless of any sentiment against it, why not physically agree and accept it.
That process, including appropriate registration, appropriate legal procedures to make it happen, should be our next concern, not the debate,” he added.
Speaking on whether state police officials would clash with the federal police, he said such conflicts would be addressed by the laws establishing state police.
“Those are things that legislation will take place to give everybody boundaries. The state police will have their boundaries. Federal police will have their boundaries. This will be taken care of by the law. Everybody will know the extent to which they can go. The important thing is to have the society and community secure,” he added.
Another former military spokesman, Brig. Gen. Sani Kukasheka Usman (rtd) says the debate is understandable, as it has become increasingly relevant in the light of the persistent challenges of banditry, terrorism, kidnapping and other forms of violent crime across the country.
“As such it is an idea that has come with time moreso as the government and the political class view it as the solution to most of the security problems in the country”.
According to him, although this is debatable, however, I personally believe that state police can be a step in the right direction if it is carefully designed and implemented.
“A policing system that is closer to the people has the advantage of better local knowledge, faster response times and improved intelligence gathering. Given the size and diversity of the country, it is becoming increasingly difficult for a highly centralised federal policing structure alone to effectively address all security threats across the country,” he said.
He stressed further, “However, we must also be honest with ourselves. The insecurity we face today did not emerge overnight. It is, to a large extent, the result of decades of neglect of our policing system. Nigeria already has numerous structures and legal frameworks intended to strengthen policing and oversight, including the Nigeria Police Council, a whole ministry for police affairs, the Police Service Commission, the office of the Inspector-General of Police at Louis Edet House and even the Nigeria Police Trust Fund. Yet, despite these institutions, the expected transformation of policing has remained elusive, largely because of inadequate political will, poor implementation and inconsistent commitment to reform.”
He lamented the dormant nature of the police council in the face of widespread insecurity.
“My greatest concern regarding state police is therefore not merely its establishment but its sustainability. We witnessed a similar situation with community policing, which was widely applauded at inception in 2013 or thereabouts and we made far reaching recommendations as part of our Presidential Parley Report in 2018, but gradually lost momentum due to insufficient funding, weak institutional support, lack of political will and policy inconsistency.
“Consequently , there is a genuine risk or fear that state police could suffer the same fate if governments at federal, state and local government levels fail to demonstrate sustained commitment and political will,” he said.
He also expressed concern about political interference and possible abuse by state governments when state police becomes a reality.
“For this reason, strong constitutional safeguards, independent oversight, transparent recruitment, professional standards and clear operational boundaries must accompany any state police framework,” he said.
Speaking further, General Usman said state police may not be the solution to the current banditry and terrorism challenges.
“Regarding whether state police will curb banditry and terrorism, I do not see it as a silver bullet. It can strengthen local intelligence and improve response capabilities, but lasting success will also require better intelligence coordination, judicial efficiency, border security, economic opportunities for vulnerable populations and most importantly, a determined effort to tackle the root causes of insecurity,.
“To quicken its establishment, there must be political consensus among stakeholders, accelerated constitutional amendments and a clearly defined framework for funding, accountability, training, command structure and collaboration with federal security agencies.
“Therefore, I support the concept of state police in principle. However, its success will depend less on creating new structures and more on demonstrating the political will that has often been lacking in the management of existing ones. Without guaranteed funding, policy continuity and strong oversight, state police may simply become another well-intentioned reform that falls short of its promise,” he added.
