Amid the increasing agitation for an efficient and responsive police system, the Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele on Monday in Ilorin lamented the dysfunctionality of the Nigeria Police, pointing out that as currently constituted, the police was not properly established to succeed in the country.
While warning against the incessant deployment of the armed forces without compliance with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution, Bamidele faulted the undue establishment and operations of vigilante groups and security outfits at the state levels without national legal framework. “I maintain that the police have not been set up properly to succeed in this nation. Effective policing in Nigeria is almost impossible unless there are fundamental changes. Indeed, the constraints faced by the police are used as excuses for various misconducts and unprofessional behaviours by many officers of the force.
Said he: “In order to achieve some semblance of security in this country, there is need to decentralise the police force and empower state governments to have country over their security affcairs. “Establishing and maintaining state police police forces require significant financial investments. States must be prepared to allocate adequate resources for training, equipping and remunerating their police personnel.”
Bamidele first suggested that an Independent Police Service Commission should be established to guarantee the autonomy, independence and non-partisanship of the state police at federal and state levels in matters of appointment, discipline, promotions and accountability. Bamidele expressed grave concern about the proliferation of vigilantes and security outfits in nearly all states of the federation without providing a legal framework for their operations.
“It is therefore improper for the state governments to exercise policing powers without clearly constitutional provisions or nationally defined legal framework in order to avoid undue descent into anarchy.