“Both the federal government and the state governments agree to the necessity of having state police, now this is a significant shift.”
President Bola Tinubu on Thursday met with state governors in Abuja during which they considered “the possibility of setting up state police.”
Details of the meeting were disclosed by Information Minister Mohammed Idris who addressed journalists after the meeting.
“Now, there is also a discussion around the issue of state police. The federal government and the state governments are mulling the possibility of setting up state police,” Mr Idris said.
Mr Idris said that attendees at the meeting agreed on the need for state police but more discussions are still needed on how to implement it.
“Of course, this is still going to be further discussed. A lot of work has to be done in that direction. Both the federal government and the state governments agree to the necessity of having state police, now this is a significant shift. But like I said, more work needs to be done in that direction.”
The president’s meeting with the governors comes amid a recent surge in insecurity across the country. Various armed groups operate in different parts of the country, exploiting the absence of police and local administration.
There are almost daily reports of kidnappings and killings in different parts of the country. Last month, in the Federal Capital Territory, a family of six, comprising female siblings and their father, were kidnapped.
In some states such as Katsina, Kaduna and Zamfara, the bandits operate from forests and forest reserves.
To address this, Mr Idris said, President Tinubu and the state governors discussed the possibility of improving the numerical strength of forest rangers and training them so that they can keep forests and borders safe.
Before now, the president had mooted the idea of increasing the numerical strength of the police, which is said to be over 300,000. At the end of the Nigeria Police Council conclave, which Mr Tinubu chaired in October last year, he set up a Constitutional Review Committee to carry out comprehensive police reform.
The 2014 National Political Reform Conference had recommended devolving policing after its painstaking deliberations. This implies allowing states to create their police, in addition to enabling community policing.
However, Former President Goodluck Jonathan who initiated the 2014 conference, and his successor, Muhammadu Buhari, did not implement the recommendations of the report despite the security situation.
Mr Idris, the information minister said, “A lot of meetings will have to happen between the federal government and the subnationals to see the modalities of achieving state policing.”
In an editorial last December, PREMIUM TIMES charged the president to change course and pursue the struggle against insecurity to a logical end. It noted that Nigeria needs pragmatic, intelligence-driven, well-trained, equipped and technology-led policing in each state.
Food security
Aside from insecurity, Mr Idris said the meeting discussed issues of food security and inflation in the country.
News has reported how government policies such as the removal of petrol subsidy have led to over 200 per cent rise in the price of commodities without any corresponding increase in wages across the country.
Mr Idris indicated that the government would double down on its clamp down on food hoarders.
“At this point, the nation requires food to be brought out to the people so that we can control prices and put food on the table of most Nigerians, other commodity traders are busy hoarding these commodities so that Nigerians will suffer or they will make more money as a result,” the minister said.
He added that a decision has also been taken that there will be no need for food importation at this point.
“Nigeria has the potential to feed itself and even be a net exporter of food items to other countries. And we do not also want to reverse some of the progress we have seen in terms of food production in this country,” Mr Idris said.
“What we’re seeing now is just a temporary difficulty that will soon go away. Therefore, the solution to it is by continuous investment in agriculture so that food can be made available to all Nigerians.”
On Thursday, the National Bureau of Statistics said the nation’s food inflation in January 2024 increased to 35.41 per cent on a year-on-year basis, confirming the misery of many households in the country.
Mr Tinubu had earlier declared a state of emergency on food insecurity.
“Part of the measures that he has taken is to ensure that investments, more investments are made in agriculture sector for the benefit of our people,” Mr Idris said.
“The governors have also agreed to join hands with Mr president to deepen their own investment in the agricultural sector so that more food will be made available to Nigerians. Of course, this investment is not just in crop production, it is also in livestock development and management,” the minister said.
“All this is to ensure that food is available.
Source : https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/668620-insecurity-tinubu-governor-agree-on-state-police-to-work-out-implementation.html
