The acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) Olatunji Disu has inaugurated a committee to explore the framework for state police in the country, reigniting a stalled debate on policing reforms.
The move comes against a backdrop of rising violence, from banditry in the North-West to separatist agitation in the South-East, banditry, and kidnapping for ransom with the centralised Nigeria Police Force (NPF) struggling to cope.
NewsQuest reports that the proposal for the creation of State Police however remains mired in constitutional barriers.
Policing is a federal monopoly under section 214 of the Nigerian 1999 constitution (as amended) – as the planned reforms comes with deep-seated anxieties including fears that State Governors might turn state forces into tools of political repression.
IGP Disu while speaking at the committee’s launch in Abuja, described the initiative as essential for adapting to “evolving security challenges”.
“This task is significant and timely,” he said, as he urged members to craft a model that bolsters national security without fragmentation.
According to him, decentralised policing, would harness local knowledge for faster responses, freeing federal officers for transnational threats like terrorism and cybercrime.
The committee has members including senior officers such as CP Bode Ojajuni (secretary) and retired CP Emmanuel Ojukwu, has been tasked with studying global models, funding mechanisms and safeguards for professionalism.
IGP Disu also stressed that “synergy, not competition”, insisting the federal force’s primacy would endure.
The IGP who recently reaffirmed his backing for state police after his swearing-in as the 23rd IGP, dismissed fears of turf wars: “It’s partnership. Our jobs are not being taken,” he noted.
