BY RAPHAEL EKPANG, ABUJA
The Senator representing Cross River central in the senate, SENATOR PROFESSOR SANDY ONOR has said that state policing is inevitable considering the state of insecurity Nigeria is currently facing.
ONOR while contributing on the motion “Nigeria Security Challenges: Urgent need to restructure, review and reorganise the current Security architecture sponsored by the senate leader, ABDULAHI YAHAYA ABUBAKAR and 85 others stress the need for the local government areas to be carried along by the state government while embarking on the state policing.
According to him, “Mr. President I just like to speak on two issues; the first is the state policing. I never believe in state policing before because I am a local government practitioner. I watched our local government in this country been armed bushed and undermined and rendered ineffective and inefficient by the state government practitioners.”
“I never used to believe at all on state policing, I always thought that the same status that has attended local government, caused great consequences will attend state policing but today I think differently, Mr. President, the state policing is inevitable; their differences are very clear’;
If the federal police is operating from the outside-inside perspective, the state police will be operating inside-outside perspective because they know the nooks and crannies of the areas they found themselves,”
Meanwhile, he warned that the state government must carry along the local government in the creation and proper functioning of state police because they are a very critical aspect of government that must not be ignore if anything good must come from it,
Meanwhile, SEN. OLUREMI TINUBU, (Lagos central) also recommended the creation of state police to tackle Nigeria’s security challenge.
According to her, states that are capable of having state police should be given permission to do so.
“If we really want to tackle our insecurity correctly, we should look at state police. I believe in you – Senate President – to do it this time.
“I have seen what insecurity has meted out to Nigerians and the vulnerable group in particular-women and children. State policing: if we want to go there, we should allow states that are ready.” She stated.
