Precious Nwonu, Enugu

The Presidency has assured Nigerians that the proposed state police system will be designed to prevent political interference and abuse by individual office holders.

Nnadubem Moghalu, Secretary of the Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill, gave the assurance on Tuesday in Abuja, saying safeguards against the misuse of state police powers had been central to the drafting of the proposed legislation.

Moghalu spoke at the second Annual Distinguished Parliamentarian Lecture and Award Series organised by the House of Representatives Press Corps. The event was themed, “The Imperative of State Police: Securing Communities, Strengthening Federalism.”

He said the proposed framework would clearly define the responsibilities of federal and state police authorities while establishing mechanisms for accountability and oversight.

“We are trying to build a system that is as immune to the personal foibles of individuals as possible,” Moghalu said.

According to him, the need for state police is partly driven by the pressure on the existing centralised policing system.

Nigeria has about 380,000 police officers for a population of more than 200 million, Moghalu said. However, he noted that about 180,000 officers are engaged in special protection and administrative duties, leaving roughly 200,000 officers for core policing responsibilities.

He said this effectively reduces the policing capacity to about one officer for every 1,000 citizens.

Under the proposed dual-policing arrangement, state police would handle offences and security matters within their jurisdictions, while the Federal Police Service would retain responsibility for national, interstate and other crimes requiring federal coordination.

Moghalu identified human trafficking, cybercrime and offences with international implications among areas that would remain under federal jurisdiction. He also stressed the importance of cooperation and shared technology between the two levels to prevent criminals from exploiting jurisdictional gaps.

The proposed National Policing Bill is expected to provide the legal and operational framework for the new system, including recruitment, training, funding, command structures, accountability, human rights safeguards and cooperation between federal and state police services.

Moghalu said states would be expected to fund their police services according to their security priorities, noting that state governments already provide substantial financial and logistical support to federal security agencies operating within their territories.

The constitutional amendment required to establish state police is currently before the 36 state Houses of Assembly. At least 24 state assemblies, representing two-thirds of the states, must approve the amendment before it can proceed to the next stage.

So far, Edo, Oyo, Osun and Rivers have approved the proposal, according to the Presidential Working Group.

The National Assembly transmitted the constitutional amendment to the state legislatures in September after both chambers approved the proposal. The proposed reform would create a dual policing architecture consisting of the Federal Police Service and State Police Services.

However, the proposal has also generated calls for strong safeguards to prevent state police from becoming instruments of political control. Stakeholders at the Abuja forum emphasised the need for independent oversight, adequate funding, professional training, accountability and respect for human rights.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, represented at the event by the House spokesman, Akin Rotimi, urged journalists to examine the proposed legislation on the basis of evidence, its provisions and likely consequences rather than partisan considerations.

Abbas said the media had a responsibility to scrutinise whether the proposed policy would work, whether the legislation was fit for purpose and whether public resources would be deployed in the national interest.

The Presidency had earlier said the constitutional amendment alone would not operationalise state police, stressing that the National Policing Bill would establish the detailed framework required for implementation.