THE Northern Elders Forum (NEF) and Pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, have backed the House of Representatives’ quest to create state police as a bill seeking to amend the 1999 Constitution to that effect scaled through second reading at the lower chamber.
Titled, ‘A bill for an Act to Alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Cap C23, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 to provide for state police and other state government security services to enhance security and preservation of lives and properties in Nigeria, and other related matters’, it was sponsored by the Chairman of the House Committee on Judiciary, Onofiok Luke.
Presenting the bill, yesterday, the lawmaker reminded that Nigeria, with a population of over 200 million people, is grossly under-policed as it has only about 400,000 personnel.
“This number falls far short of the United Nation’s recommendation of ratio 1 per 400 citizens.
“The constitution envisages Nigeria as a federal state. Granting allowance to state governments to establish police force and other security apparatuses will bring Nigeria into original constitutional contemplation of federal state,” he said.
Luke said the primary responsibility of every government all over the world is to protect and preserve the lives and properties of its citizens and to maintain law and order.
According to the lawmaker, the principle of social contract was anchored on the protection and preservation of lives and properties.
“Any failure on the part of the government to keep to this basic responsibility/contractual term portends danger. Many years after independence, Nigeria has continually been beset with insecurity ranging from terrorism, kidnapping, armed robbery and domestic violence.
“There is no society without crime or manifestation of criminal behaviour; our inability to bring to the barest minimum crime is a scathing indictment on the current security architecture and structure in the country.
“This bill seeks to excise item 45 (Police and other government security services) from the exclusive legislative list and place same on the concurrent legislative list to give allowance for different state governments to legislate on security matters, which will effectively give state government’s power to establish state police.
“The Bill comprised of 5 clauses. Clause 1 generally alters the provision of the Principal Act. Clause 2 establishes state police council and state police service commission just as we have at the federal level. Clause 3 alters the second schedule to the constitution by deleting it from the exclusive legislative list police and government security agencies and inserting the Item in the concurrent legislative list, thereby empowering both the National Assembly and houses of assembly of states to legislate on police and other security matters.
“Clause 4 provides for the composition and functions of state police council and state police service commission…Clause 5 contains the citation,” he said.
In reaction, yesterday, NEF welcomed the bill but stressed that it must be done in a way that will not give room for political abuse.
The group’s Director of Publicity and Advocacy, Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, said: “I don’t think it is a bad idea and it should be made flexible for states that don’t need it or cannot afford it to opt out and therefore depend on the federal police.
“The truth is that most states in this country have one form of regulatory outfits or the other and we are already operating sub-national security outfits, it is just a matter of being realistic. The federal government cannot continue to shoulder the burden of policing in this country”.
Baba-Ahmed, however, stressed that state police is completely different from regional policing adding that “regions have no place in the Nigerian constitutions, therefore, regional outfits that have emerged in the likes of Amotekun and the others have no basis in this discussion”.
On its part, the Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) have accused governors in the northern region of lacking in foresight because they failed to introduce an alternative security outfit that could be collapsed into state police when the bill seeking its establishment is passed. It also described the bill seeking to establish state police as a ploy by the federal government to abdicate its responsibilities.
Its spokesman, Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, said they were particularly worried that the North would remain at the receiving end with the Amotekun and others way ahead of any regional security outfit that the North might come up with.
“The South as it were would only need to convert their already established and kitted outfits while the North would only be starting,” he said.
Meanwhile, speaking on the debate, the National Publicity Secretary of Afenifere, Comrade Jare Ajayi, said the plan by the House of Representatives to create state police was a good move and a fundamental part of the restructuring which they have been advocating for.
He said, “This is a good thing. Afenifere believes the House of Representatives is already in the process of amending the constitution to allow state police.
“It is a very good thing because it is in line with the restructuring we are talking about. Part of the elements of restructuring we are talking about is a situation where you have states controlling the security apparatus within their jurisdiction and we even want it to simmer down up to the local government level whereby the security apparatus government level will be in the hands of local government executive chairman.”
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