Nigeria is bedevilled by lingering insurgency and insecurity in the form of violent crimes such as abductions, farmer-herder conflict, attacks on local communities, revived secessionist movements and much more. Besides retarding the economic progress of the country, the consequences of these conflicts are enormous, to say the least. Farming communities have been sacked by bandits thereby endangering food security.
A few studies have also shown the negative impacts of insecurity on governance and economic growth; it sucks
out investments, reduces direct investments from businesses abroad and increases unemployment and dwindles government revenues.
Security is inextricably linked to our current economic crises and tackling the aforementioned successfully will likely involve resolving this precarious situation — a journey that will no doubt start with reforms of the Police as we know it, and federal (and state) policing laws.
I had the opportunity to work on public engagements for the Police Reform Bill in 2018 and at the time, it struck me that we could start to fix a string of problems we had (and still do) as a country by starting with the Nigerian Police. It is my opinion that we could have done more to capture the immediate need for reforms in police welfare for example, but I digress.
Proponents of state police say it is in line with the principles of true federalism and
decentralisation or devolution of powers, and that such an arrangement would enable our 36 states to effectively maintain law and order, especially during emergencies.
While not discounting counter-arguments of potential abuse of power by state executives, and factoring in the
rising violence across the country, I think it’s time to bring back discussions on state policing
to the fore.
If we are going to achieve everything I’ve mentioned, we’ll have to first look at the National Assembly where Senator Uba Sani has sponsored four bills to secure the decentralisation of policing in Nigeria. The bills have all successfully passed through the first reading at the Senate.
The first Bill seeks to alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 to amongst other provisions establish State Police Force in the 36 states of the Federation, change the name of the Police Service Commission to the Federal Police Service Commission, establish the State Police Service Commission and amend the Second and Third Schedules of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.
The second one is Police Service Commission Act 2001 (Repeal and Re-Enactment) Bill, 2020 which “seeks to repeal the Police Service Commission Act 2001 and enact the Federal Police Service Commission (Est. Etc) Bill to amongst other provisions establish a Commission which shall be charged with the discipline of all officers except in state police force and to dismiss and exercise disciplinary control over any person holding office in the Nigeria Police Force (other than the inspector-general of police).
Third is the Nigerian Police Act (Amendment) Bill, 2020, seeking to alter the Nigeria Police Act 2020 to amongst other provisions establish an operational structure for State Police Force in the 36 states of the Federation, change the name of the Police Service Commission to the Federal Police Service Commission, and address new issues that are not covered under the Nigeria Police Act 2020.
Finally is the State Police Service Commission (Establishment) Bill, 2020. Once enacted, the law will among other provisions seeks to establish a Commission which shall be charged with discipline of all officers except in state police force and to dismiss and exercise disciplinary control over any person holding office in the State Police Force (other than the Commissioner of police).
Undoubtedly, the state police once established through the senator’s effort, will become one of the enduring legacies of Senator Uba and indeed the Buhari administration.
Uba Sani’s own senatorial district, Kaduna Central has had more than its fair share of insecurity, so it is only sensible that he would champion this cause.
An arduous journey no doubt awaits the Kaduna Senator, so kudos to him for engaging in a battle many would consider a sinking pool or threading on a path many fear to contemplate.
As a people, we should really look into a lot of the discussions brought on by last year’s protests in relation to the Nigerian Police. These include funding, training, equipment, welfare and discipline. In order to fulfil our economic potential and take advantage of the AfCFTA for the benefit of citizens, we have to roll our sleeves and do this dirty work- we the
citizens, and the officials we’ve elected to defend our interests.
As we hope for a successful passage of the bills and accent by President Buhari, I urge us all to be optimistic and rest assured that our elected officials as represented by Senator Uba Sani are doing the needful to ensure our people’s aspirations are met. For Senator Sani, it is indeed a new dawn as he stands up to be counted in this perilous time.