Civil society organisations have warned the Federal Government that creating state police alone will not end Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, insisting that reforms must also tackle the underlying governance, economic and social problems driving violence across the country.
The warning came on Tuesday during a webinar titled “Insecurity and State Policing in Nigeria: The Way Forward”, organised by the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), where the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), Africana League and CAPPA argued that policing reforms would achieve little without addressing poverty, unemployment, corruption, weak institutions and political exclusion.
The Executive Director of RULAAC, Okechukwu Nwanguma, said insecurity should not be viewed merely as a policing problem, noting that governance failures remained the root causes of crime and violence.
According to him, while decentralising policing could improve responses to local security threats, it would not resolve Nigeria’s security crisis unless accompanied by broader governance reforms.
“Police can respond to crime, but they cannot eliminate the structural conditions that produce it. No restructuring of police institutions alone will solve Nigeria’s security crisis,” Nwanguma said.
He cautioned that state police could become another tool for abuse unless strong accountability measures were embedded in the proposed system.
Nwanguma called for national standards on recruitment, training and discipline; operational independence from partisan political influence; independent civilian oversight; transparent complaint mechanisms; sustainable funding; and legal safeguards against the use of state police for electoral intimidation or political repression.
“Without these safeguards, decentralisation may simply transfer abuse from Abuja to the state capitals,” he warned.
He also criticised the ongoing constitutional amendment process on state policing, urging the National Assembly to ensure extensive consultations with civil society groups, professional bodies, traditional rulers, women, youth organisations, labour unions and security experts before approving the proposal.
Also speaking, Executive Director of Africana League, Dr Glory Ukwenga, said any state policing framework that excludes young people would be incomplete, noting that youths account for over 70 per cent of Nigeria’s population and are among the groups most affected by insecurity. History
She advocated youth representation on state police service commissions, police-community relations committees and security advisory councils, as well as structured consultations with youth organisations during the reform process.
Ukwenga also recommended youth-focused recruitment into the police, civic education programmes and digital platforms that would enable young people to report security concerns and contribute to policy development.
CAPPA’s Executive Director, Akinbode Oluwafemi, said discussions on state policing should focus not only on decentralisation but also on the type of policing Nigeria intends to build. NigerianEntrepreneur Support
According to him, policing should be community-oriented, rights-based and accountable to citizens, rather than serving as an instrument of political control.
He argued that poor access to education, healthcare, water, electricity, roads and employment continues to fuel insecurity, stressing that these structural challenges must be addressed alongside security reforms.
Oluwafemi also warned against rushing constitutional amendments in response to the current security crisis, saying Nigeria should first address the institutional weaknesses affecting existing security agencies before creating new policing structures.
The speakers unanimously maintained that establishing additional police forces would not, on its own, resolve Nigeria’s security challenges.
They urged the Federal Government and the National Assembly to ensure that any state policing arrangement strengthens democratic governance, protects human rights and promotes accountability, rather than creating fresh opportunities for political interference and abuse.
Credit: thenationonlineng.net
