Tobias Sylvester
Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) has revealed that the quest for the creation of state police by some governors, groups, and individuals in the country was not intended to undermine the existing Federal Police, the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
The revelation was made known on Tuesday by the NGF Chairman, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, who is also the Governor of Ekiti State, while speaking at a security summit, tagged, “Stakeholders’ security summit: Focus on Western Nigeria” held in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
According to Fayemi, the clamour for creation of state police by Nigerian governors, groups and individuals across the country, is not intended to undermine or abolish the already existing federal police.
The NGF Chairman while remarking that the security situation in the country has warranted that each state has its own police, insisted that the existing federal police and the state police would work together when states are allowed to have their own police.
He maintained that what was obtainable in other countries where federalism is being practiced is that, federal and state police work without engaging in unhealthy rivalry.
He added that he is of the opinion that federal and state police would work to complement each others’ efforts without any rivalry, as he insisted that the quest is not against the already existing federal police or to undermine it or to abolish it. He said:
“Our clamor for state police is not intended to abolish federal police. They go side by side anywhere in the world. Our call for state police is not to abolish the existing Nigeria Police force.
“In all the meetings, I have been attending is, security. Even your Governors last week, we were in Abuja last week, when the National Economic Council was inaugurated, we have only one agenda, it is security.
“Our quest for state police is not tantamount to abolition of federal police.
“We have deployed drone system in order to ensure that criminal elements are tamed. Wherever they are, we will track them.
“We must tackle poverty in the region; we must tackle poverty in our midst. All hands must be on the deck to ensure that we stop the criminal elements in our midst.”
