The Tinubu Media Support Group (TMSG) has described President Bola Tinubu’s affirmation of State Policing as a sign of his consistency on policy matters.
In a statement signed by its Chairman Emeka Nwankpa and Secretary Dapo Okubanjo, TMSG noted that in spite of the delay in the process, it was increasingly clear that the President Tinubu administration would institutionalise state police in the country.
It said, “We are aware that President Tinubu’s pledge on the establishment of state police at the Iftar with state governors is about the third time in one year that he would be stating his position on a decentralised police system for the country.
When President Tinubu first mooted the idea of state police at an exploratory meeting with governors in February 2024, it was in line with his long-standing belief that a decentralised police force is the panacea for security challenges in the country.
“We recall that his predecessor, the late Muhammadu Buhari had ruled out that option because of his belief that state governors would abuse it.
“So in reaffirming his stance to the governors two years after that exploratory meeting, it is clear that the President is keen on reminding everyone that the process of amending the constitution to reflect a decentralised policing system was ongoing at the National Assembly even without going into finer details.
“We agree with President Tinubu that state police would go a long way to curb insecurity. It is a bottom-up approach to policing because it involves decentralising security responsibilities to local levels as well as empowering states to take ownership of security in their territory.
“Put differently, it is another form of devolving policing functions to the lower levels where communities are integral to overall national security in line with the now-popular whole-of-government approach.
“And while we are not unaware of concerns about possible abuse, we are encouraged about the safeguards that the federal legislature has been contemplating in terms of provisions for a National Police Council which the National Assembly is putting into the bill for the creation of state police.
“While the National Police Council is to provide guidelines to states on the establishment of state police responsible for local security, the federal police will retain jurisdiction over federal crimes, national security matters and inter-state issues. It is also to have oversight on state police and recommend the removal of police chiefs where necessary
Like all Nigerians, we are eagerly looking forward to the National Assembly completing work on the process of amending the constitution to reflect a decentralised police system for the country.”
The group also urged the federal legislature to speed up the process especially as it still has to go through all the state legislatures.
