According to a report by the Punch on Thursdays, March 5, 2026, a retired Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Ali Amodu, has thrown his weight behind the ongoing move to establish state police, describing the initiative as long overdue and professionally necessary.
Reacting to the decision by the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, to inaugurate a committee on state policing, Amodu said the development reflects a gradual shift toward reforms that many officers had contemplated decades ago.
He explained that the idea of decentralising the Nigeria Police Force was not new to him, recalling that he had advocated for it early in his career after receiving training abroad. Drawing from his experience in the United Kingdom, he said the structure he observed there influenced his thinking about how policing could be adapted to suit Nigeria’s needs.
According to him, “I came back from the UK and I actually made a suggestion to the police authority then that they should think of decentralising the police force because I saw the pattern in the UK.”
Amodu noted that his proposal at the time was met with resistance from senior officers who were uncomfortable with altering the centralised command structure. However, he expressed satisfaction that the concept is now gaining wider acceptance as security challenges evolve.
He maintained that policing differs significantly from military operations, stressing that effective law enforcement requires close interaction with local communities. In his view, decentralised policing could foster trust, encourage information sharing and improve response to community-specific threats.
The retired officer added that any move toward state police would require constitutional amendments, as the current legal framework recognises a single national police force. He urged lawmakers and security authorities to carefully design a structure that defines supervisory roles, jurisdictional boundaries and coordination mechanisms to avoid operational conflicts.
With the committee now set up under the leadership of senior officers and experts, Amodu expressed optimism that professional input from within the Force would help shape a balanced and workable model for state policing in Nigeria.See_More…