By Ime Akpan
The new speaker of the Ondo state House of Assembly, Ms. Jumoke Akindele, has advocated for the introduction of state police to curtail insurgency and other criminal acts.
Speaking yesterday in Lagos, the lawmaker said her call was informed by the excesses of the Boko Haram insurgents that had continued to main, kill and destroy properties in the north-east.
She said the introduction of state police would enhance security of lives and property in Nigeria, stressing that the current security challenges ravaging the nation “will be better checked if states are allowed to have their own police force.”
She said: “The way I see the current security crises rocking the country could be attributed to the absence of state police and failure of intelligence gathering.
“To effectively tackle the issue, we have to go back to the establishment of state police. It is only the people of a particular environment that know the thieves in their midst. Therefore, if you send people to a place without the knowledge of that environment, as it is currently done in the country, we will not achieve the much desired result.
“If, for example, Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states, currently experiencing the Boko Haram insurgency have their own state police, it would be easier for them to police their own people and checkmate the activities of the Islamic sect.”
She added: “Still they would pay more attention and be more committed because they may feel that it might be their grandfather or mother that would be killed next.
“We have been equipping the army, the police the navy, again and again, but with what result? What we need is state police for proper intelligence gathering. Though it has its challenges, let’s look at the advantages. We just may get something good out of it.”
