Governors say their status as chief security officers of their respective states is merely a semantic as only creation of state police can truly confer such status on them.
Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State may not forget in a hurry, the event of July 11, 2018. That was the day policemen sent from the Force Headquarters, Abuja, for the conduct of the July 14 governorship election in the state fired at him canisters of teargas.
“The governor walked to the place, insisting that the rally would take place. It was then the police started firing gunshots and canisters of teargas to force governor and his entourage backwards,” a witness said.
Police claimed their action was to prevent a breakdown of law and order.
Fayose emerged from the attack with injuries and had to wear a cervical collar. About 30,000 policemen were deployed in the state for the election but none was sent to protect the governor. Instead, police officers posted to Ekiti State Government House were withdrawn two days to the election, on the orders of the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris.
Barely two weeks later, July 30 to be precise, a detachment of heavily armed policemen sealed off Benue State House of Assembly. That was a few hours after Governor Samuel Ortom was issued impeachment notice by eight out of the 30 members of the Assembly.
Ortom, who was elected on the platform of All Progressives Congress (APC), defected to the PDP with 22 members of the House of Assembly. The invading police force also chased away workers at the Assembly complex.
There was confusion on who gave the order. Ortom’s Chief Press Secretary, Terver Akase, said the state Commissioner of Police told the governor’s security adviser that “he has orders from above to chase out the civil servants and seal off the state Assembly”. But the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Moses Yamu, feigned ignorance.
“Which police sealed it? I think I will have to find out, too. Let me make inquiries,” he was quoted to have told journalists.
Fayose and Ortom are supposed to be chief security officers (CSOs)of their respective states. As CSOs, they ought to be the ones deploying police personnel for effective security of their states. But they turned out to be the victims.
Sometime in 2003, following the failed kidnap of former Governor Chris Ngige of Anambra State, all his security personnel were withdrawn “on the order from above”.
For several months, Ngige was exposed to security risk, save for the officers and men of the unarmed Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) who provided security to the Government House, Awka.
State governors say their status as CSOs of their states is simply a nomenclature.
Governor Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara State, who also doubles as Chairman of Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), said he was powerless as chief security officer of his state. “We have been facing serious security challenges over the years, but in spite of being governor and chief security officer of the state, I cannot direct security officers on what to do or sanction them when they err.
“As chief security officer, the nomenclature is just a name,” Yari noted. Zamfara State has lost lives of many of her innocent citizens to cattle rustlers.
His Taraba State counterpart, Darius Ishaku, whose state has experienced several herdsmen/farmers clashes, also noted, “I’m here as a governor, but I cannot control one troop.”
Other state governors have bitter stories to tell; some of them were exposed to harm when their security details were suddenly withdrawn by police high command.
The governors said only state police could truly restore their position as CSOs of their respective states.
The July 2018 edition of the NGF monthly magazine: ‘The Executive Summary’, was devoted to the discussion of ‘state police.’
Entitled ‘State Police: The Time is Now’, the magazine detailed the spate of insecurity in the country and the helplessness of the state governors to the situation despite their status as “chief security officers” of their states.
Apart from being unable to command security personnel under them, the governors said they provided the chunk of security equipment for the police to combat insecurity. Yet, in the face of growing insecurity, they have to resort to vigilante, to secure their states.
According to the magazine, 32 out of 36 state governors in the country, have spent N2 trillion to support the police in the fight against criminal activities in the last 10 years. The contributions of the four other states of Borno, Yobe, Adamawa and Gombe, regarded as the frontline states, were not included in the figure.
Lagos State alone, according to the magazine, contributed a large chunk of this money, totalling over N4.765 billion in 2015, to sustain the police.
This included three helicopters, two gunboats, 15 armoured personnel carriers (APCs), 100 cars, 55 Ford Ranger pick-up vans, 10 Toyota Landcruiser pick-up vans and 115 power bikes, among others.
The previous administration in the state also supported the police with 10 APCs as well as operational vehicles and motorcycles, etc.
Governor Nyesom Wike of River State, who appeared not to have too cosy relationship with the IG, Ibrahim Idris, because he believes the IG is using police personnel to intimidate officials of his government, equally donated four APCs and 84 patrol vans, to the state command since he assumed office. His predecessor in office, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, also gave the police command in the state 50 Hilux patrol vans, when he was governor.
Ortom of Benue State, who narrowly escaped impeachment recently when policemen from the Force Headquarters sealed the state House of Assembly, gave the state police command 16 Hilux vans in September 2017.
Kwara State government, between 2010 and 2012, supported the police with 25 Toyota Hilux pick-up vans, three Toyota Corolla cars, 120 motorcycles, among others, to fight crime in the state.
Other state governors also made some donations to the police in support of crime fighting in their states
The Abia State government, for instance, donated 50 patrol vehicles equipped with security gadgets worth N50 million, 25 operational vehicles and 34 motorcycles, between 2011 and 2018 while Akwa Ibom State government gave the state police command 11 gunboats and 31 Hilus vans.
The present and previous administrations in Anambra State assisted the police command with 35 patrol trucks, 50 motorcycles, 25 security cars, 100 horses and 50 vehicles, to fight criminal activities in the state.
Kano, Kaduna, Cross Rivers, Ebonyi, Enugu, among other states, at various times, have donated generously to the police towards ensuring the safety and security of their people.
Given the quantum of financial contributions by the governors to aid crime prevention, Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, said the Federal Government should handover both the police force and its budget to the states for efficiency.
He said: “You cannot give responsibility without financial responsibility. We are still equipping the police even to the extent of paying them allowances in some cases. So, if we have the money and the police, we will be able to operate in a better way.”
The demand for state police has been a thorny issue in the country for over a period of time.
The proponents, mostly state governors, apart from the issue of funding listed above, believe that it is the right time for Nigeria to decentralise her police.
Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State said “security of lives and property cannot and should not remain on the Exclusive Legislative List in the country’s constitution. There should be constitutional provision for state and community policing with necessary safe-guards put in place”.
Nigeria is practising a federal system. The governors therefore, argued that the country should toe the line of countries practising federal system of government.
America, Australia, Switzerland, Germany, Canada, and even Ethiopia, are examples of countries that have decentralised their police structure.
Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State noted that the American constitution “allows federal, state, local and even special districts, such as universities, to perform police functions. The relationship among all the police services is properly coordinated for the exchange of intelligence and crime prevention.”
In line with this, the National Assembly, last July, mandated its committee on review of the constitution to put machinery in place to amend the constitution to allow for creation of state police to address insecurity in the country.
A former Vice-President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, said legal teeth to the creation of state police by the National Assembly became necessary due to frequent deadly attacks by bandits across the country.
“A peculiar crisis demands a decisive action, and I am one 100 per cent behind the National Assembly in its efforts to strengthen the hands of state governments in providing security to their citizens,” Atiku said.
Some state Houses of Assembly have adopted this provision in the constitution.
The Presidency believes that state police would be able to tackle security challenges in the country.
Laolu Akande, Special Adviser, media to Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, noted in a statement that advocacy for state police was fast gathering momentum.
“As it gets widespread support, especially among the state governments and the National Assembly, we will be able to achieve the necessary constitutional amendments.
“For now, the main focus is to expand the implementation of community policing, which is to achieve virtually the same purpose of police personnel being very familiar with and working in close association with their local communities.
“As you know, there is already a presidential order issued for community policing to begin,” Akande said.
But there is still stiff opposition, even from the police high command. The IG, Idris, said Nigeria was not yet ripe for state police. He said in a statement by the Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Jimoh Moshood, that what the country needs was improved funding of the police.
The IG met with the governors sometime in July last year at the NGF meeting and requested for N3 trillion assistance from the states to fund the police. Idris further requested their support for the passage of the Nigeria Police Trust Fund bill before the National Assembly.
He said: “I sincerely believe that the federal police remain the best for the country and with improved funding, the challenges of crime will be addressed.
“Those agitating for state police should consider the level of our political maturity.”
Idris added that the Police Trust Fund Bill, if passed into law, would provide the necessary finances required to effectively police the nation, and as well reduce the pressure on the state governments in the funding of the police.
According to a former IG, Suleiman Abba, state police will not work in a situation where state governors are battling to pay salaries of workers and take care of qualitative education for the children.
Abba added that the cost of helmet of a policeman and protective jackets was high.
“These are very expensive issues. Ordinary gadgets of SPNH, gadgets for monitoring, are very expensive, and if the states cannot pay salaries, another important aspect of the socio-economic development of their communities, then how and why are they looking forward to shouldering this very big burden?” he asked.
The former IG accused those pushing for state police of trying to compound the security situation in the country.
Another school of thought believes that state police would be a tool in the hands of state governors to go after their perceived enemies. They easily point at the abuse of State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC), which has the constitutional responsibility of conducting elections into local government councils.
SIEC is a creation of the law but is unfortunately hampered in its activities by interference by state governors. A research sometimes ago by the Centre for Democracy and Development showed that SIEC is attached to the apron string of state governors.
The Director of the centre, Jibrin Ibrahim, said, “governors influence the state Houses of Assembly when doing the enabling laws establishing the State Independent Electoral Commission.
“We found out that there are so many people of high integrity in many of those commissions who are trying to do their best to carry out free and fair elections, and they have a number of constraints. One of the constraints they have is finance; they don’t have enough resources to organise elections.
“Those people of high integrity who try to ensure credible elections are also under a lot of political pleasure from the governors in particular who want to make sure that in every local government election, the ruling party wins all the seats, both for chairmen and all the councillors.”
There is the fear that state police may end up like that.
https://newtelegraphonline.com/2018/09/state-police-the-gains-the-fears/