Nigeria Not Ripe For State Police – IGP Egbetokun

The Nigeria Police Force has argued that the nation was not ready for state police to be constituted.

Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, stated that the creation of state police will exacerbate ethnic strife and cause split allegiance among the states at a one-day dialogue on state policing.

The Inspector General of Police, who was represented by AIG Ben Okolo, stated that the creation of state police will also result in the creation of other command structures throughout the states.

Additionally, he warned that state governors will probably misuse the state police’s privileges by abusing them for political ends, which might result in abuses of authority and human rights.

He said that the absence of necessary funds by the state government will prevent the development of the kind of police that the country needs.

He suggests creating a department under the Nigeria Police Force by combining the Federal Road Safety Commission and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, as opposed to dismantling the state police.

Additionally, he stated that in order to achieve UN standards for morden policing, the force must hire around 30,000 new police officers each year and get a larger yearly funding allotment. [CONTINUE READING HERE]