CREATION OF STATE POLICE AS SECURITY IMPERATIVE

Introduction

When in September last year, during the third United Nations Peace Day lecture in Minna , former Military President Ibrahim Babangida called for the creation of State Police, many political watchers were taken aback. Their shock may not be unconnected to the fact that given Babangida’s antecedent as military leader it would be unthinkable to make such proposals when he held sway as Head of State. But things have changed, and Nigeria has moved on and made some appreciable level of progress as far as democracy is concerned. One would therefore not be grudge the former President but rather commend him for his courage and frankness. The former president also called for state electoral commissions and fiscal federalism. It is important therefore to realise that in a true federalism like in the US, Canada, Switzerland and to some extent, colonial Nigeria, the entities met and agreed to surrender some of their powers to a central authority and at the same time, retain much of its autonomy.
Historically, in Nigeria the intervention of the army in politics abolished the autonomy of the federating units and any semblance in this regard. This turned the Central government into a Big Patron that delegate powers to the unit. But over the years the reality is that the Federal Government seems to be overwhelmed by the myriads of responsibilities it has taken upon itself.

The truth about the matter is that the nations’ leadership must sit down and take a very critical look at the call for restructuring and particularly, the creation of State Police. Arguments against the idea of state police have been largely the fear of abuse by state governors and politicians to witch hunt their perceived enemies. But that line of thought may no longer hold sway in the face of glaring realities on the ground today. The atmosphere of the rule of law now championed by President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua is enough signal that if State Police are created the same spirit of the rule of law can be used to checkmate possible excesses. That is why there are State House of Assemblies and other institutions of government in the various States.

The role of the NPF in the proposed scenario
One would wonder what the role of the central command would be in the proposed settings. To answer this question, it is important to note that the Federal Police or the Nigeria Police Force, NPF will still own the two arms of Police which include;
1 . FCID (which is like FBI in United States).
2 . The Police Mobile Force (PMF)
A decentralisation of the Force as practiced in most developed nations, will give room for the Central Command to focus on raising a crop of highly professional crop of central squad that maybe deployed from time to time when the need arises. Therefore, the Nigeria Police Force as presently constituted should not see the call for the creation of state police as an attempt to undermine their constitutional role but rather see it as a way of enhancing their operations. Enough of the undue blame heaped on the force because of the structural problems.
Derivable Benefits from State Police Structure
Reduction of Crime and Economic Impact
The rising and overwhelming rate of crime which has now involved series of kidnapping, hooliganism, violent religious fundamentalism and other forms of criminal activities is a pointer that a central command police force is no longer fashionable in view of current realities. We must all realise that every environment has its peculiarities. These myriads of social cleavages can only be effectively taken care of if we fashion our police force to meet these challenges. This can only be done through a decentralised police structure where people who hail from an area; and therefore familiar with the terrain, and know the criminals and therefore can do can do effective policing. No doubt crime will go down in Nigeria and would have a direct positive impact on the socio economic condition of the nation. The current situation where we run a 12 hour economy, as people are compelled to lock themselves indoor as from 10 pm will be put behind us. An efficient security system will no doubt, accelerate and stimulate the economy. This will bring about national growth.
Employment Opportunities
A state police structure would help to provide gainful employment for the nations teeming youth as the states would embark on massive recruitment of personnel in line with their security needs which are oblivious in view of the current system.
Inadequate Manpower
The issue of inadequate police personnel also comes into focus while looking at this challenge. Because of its high population the nation is grossly under policed. At present, Nigeria has about 371,800 policemen who are in charge of protecting and policing about 140 million Nigerians and foreigners in our midst and if we are to judge by the United Nations standard, the number of available policemen is grossly inadequate as it does not meet the 400 to 1 ratio requirement. In Nigeria we have a situation where one police is faced with the Herculean task of policing over one thousand persons. This is not practicable. But a state police structure would solve this intractable problem as the federating units would determine their security needs and raise enough manpower to meet them.
Socio- Cultural realities
The issue of culture cannot be divorced from policing. A decentralised policing structure would ensure effective incorporation of cultural complexities realities as it affects out highly diverse socio- cultural environment


Diversification and Specialization
The proposed structure would give room for a Marine Police Division that will cater for Coastal states among other relevant units. In developed nations the Police are trained according to the peculiarities of the cities where they operate.The commercial city of New York in the US is an example in this regard.
OTHER ADVANTAGES
• National Stability
• Improved execution of laws in Local Government Areas’ and States as the police will be brought closer to the people and grassroots. Indeed this is when the concept of people oriented policing will be practicable.
• The wealth of experience of retired Police officers would be drawn from as they would be available to train those that will be recruited for the purpose of the proposed state police.



Conclusion
While looking at this issue we should avoid the temptation of viewing it from the political angle but with focus on the fundamental objective which is to effectively combat crime in the nation. The National Assembly and other relevant agencies must therefore rise up to the demands of the time to find ways of midwifing the creation of State Police for the good of the nation. The high level of criminal activities demands that his be done with all seriousness and urgency. It would be recalled that in October last year President Yar’Adua presented an Anti-Terrorism Bill to the National Assembly. The action of the President must be commended in view of the recent action of Farouk Abdulmutallab a young Nigerian who attempted to bomb US Airlines. Imagine if the bill was given the necessary attention it demands, it would have gone a long way in convincing the international community of our seriousness about the war on terrorism. In this vein, let us be proactive as we approach this issue of state police. We cannot afford to wait for the rainy day before we start scampering for umbrella. The time to act is now. A stitch in time they say saves nine.
Furthermore, the creation of a State Police structure would also be a major LEAP in our match towards the much cherished true federalism that has eluded the nation for a long time.

Source: FRCN Daily commentary