State Police: “We Must Checkmate Govs Abuse” -Senate Leader

Senator Opeyemi Bamidele has called for a legislation that will address the possible abuse of state police by state governors in the country.

Opeyemi, the Majority Leader of the Nigerian Senate made the remark on Sunday in an article titled “In Search of a New Police Model”.

His comment comes on the heels of controversy surrounding the creation of state police.

Not a few Nigerian s have expressed their fears that sub-national governors will abuse the institution to further their own interest, particularly, they did not rule out the suggestion that governors could use the police under their command to oppress political opponents.

Some Nigerians who support state police insist that its advantages at this time of serious security challenges in the country supersedes whatever reservation other Nigerians have against it.

For instance, the Pan-Yoruba group Afenifere recently urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to issue an Executive Order for the establishment of state and local government Police.

“President Tinubu should get state and local government police off the ground immediately through the invocation of an Executive Order while the process of amending the Constitution continues,” the group said.

Speaking on the possible abuse by the governors Bamidele said clauses must be added in the ongoing bill for the establishment to checkmate the governors.

Bamidele stated: “In essence, the legal framework must be actionable and definite, evident and transparent, to allay public concern about the state police.

“It must convincingly address thorny issues that can, in the future, encourage the arbitrary use of state police by governors.”

Asserting the urgent need for the creation of state police in the country, Afenifere’s National Publicity Secretary, Jare Ajayi, stated that this will address the problem of insecurity such as banditry, terrorism and others.

The Afenifere spokesman made the remark during a recent conference in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital.