By Emmanuel Antswen
Some residents of Benue have said that the establishment of state police in the country would ensure the principles of true federalism and give each federating unit her autonomy.
The residents, who spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) at different interviews on Monday in Makurdi, said it would also address the peculiar and localised security challenges of each state.
According to them, the centralised Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has not been able to effectively maintain law and order across the country’s diverse regions.
They said that as a federating state, the country needed a decentralised police that would address the peculiar security challenges affecting individual sub-regions.
Speaking to NAN, a political activist, Mr Joseph Igbana, said that state police would address the worsening security challenges in the country.
Igbana said that the country is facing significant security challenges including terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, and communal violence.
He said the current security situation has truly overwhelmed the single and centralised NPF, resulting in the need for the establishment of state police.
“A state-controlled police force will be closer to local communities and provide quicker responses to security threats and emergencies without waiting for directives from the federal commands.
“The state police officers will be more familiar with the community’s terrain, language, culture, and people; this will significantly improve intelligence gathering and crime prevention,” he said.
Also Mrs Juliet Terwase, a teacher, told NAN that state police align with the principles of true federalism, adding that the federating units will have autonomy in managing their affairs.
Terwase said citizens will hold governors, who are constitutionally the chief security officers but lack operational control of the police, more accountable for the security situation in their states.
However, some argued that despite the numerous advantages for the state police, many Nigerian governors lacked the maturity to handle such an establishment without abusing it.
They said that some state governors will use the police for political vendettas, especially given past issues with the manipulation of state institutions and finances.
Mr Timothy Odoh, a public affairs analyst, said states lack the financial capacity to properly fund, equip, and pay salaries for a state police force, which could result in underpaid and corrupt officers.
Odoh also said that state police may be used by the governors to exacerbate ethnic and religious tensions, particularly against non-indigenes or minority groups within the state.
He said it will also promote local warlords who are in good books with the political class of the states across the federation.
Also contributing, Terna Ornguga said that Nigeria is not yet mature enough for decentralised policing, suggesting that it would lead to instability.
Ornguga said the current police force should be strengthened through comprehensive reforms, adequate funding and training. (NAN) www.nannews.ng