Senate Leader Alleges Those That May Hijack State Police

Senate Majority Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, has warned that the proposed state police system could be hijacked by politicians, business interests, private organisations and criminal elements if it is not properly funded.

Bamidele said a weak funding structure would expose state police to undue influence, adding that “he who pays the piper dictates the tune.”

Naija News reports that the lawmaker gave the warning on Thursday while speaking at the ARISE NEWS Townhall on State Police.

“It’s not only state actors or politicians that can abuse this. Business class, some other organisations, even criminals can abuse it, because he who pays the piper dictates the tune,” Bamidele said.

Bamidele said the success or failure of state police would depend largely on whether it enjoys sustainable funding and financial independence.

“If the state police is not well funded, it may as well be a highway to nowhere,” he said.

According to him, the proposed system must be backed by legal provisions that guarantee stable revenue, rather than leaving funding at the discretion of state governors.

“We must have a situation where there will be some first-line provisions in our law. The police chief and the police service commission must have a guaranteed source of income in a way that it will not be subject to the whims and caprices of a sitting governor,” he said.

He suggested that the law could provide for a fixed percentage of state budgets to be allocated to policing, with clear guidelines on how the funds would be accessed and managed.

The Senate Leader explained that the constitutional amendment being considered by the National Assembly was not meant to compel every state to immediately establish its own police force.

He said the aim was to move policing from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent Legislative List, thereby giving states the constitutional power to create their own police services if they choose.

“It’s not every state that will immediately, after we finish amending this constitution, go to town to say, ‘We’re launching our state police.’ All we are trying to achieve with this constitutional amendment is to move this duty from the exclusive legislative list to the concurrent legislative list,” he said.

Bamidele admitted that concerns over possible abuse of state police were valid, especially given Nigeria’s political history.

“The various concerns that have been expressed from different quarters are well-founded concerns that we cannot sweep under the carpet or pretend that they are not real,” he stated.

He said lawmakers must build adequate safeguards into the legal framework to prevent abuse and ensure accountability.

“When it comes to issues of accountability, it’s something that will have to be addressed, both at the level of legislative intervention, through the law, as well as vigilance on the part of the Nigerian people,” he added.

Bamidele said a constitutional amendment alone would not be enough to create an effective state police system.

“We must see beyond constitutional amendment, because once the constitution has been amended, what is next?” he asked.

He said amendments to the Police Act and other relevant laws would be required to define the structure, operations and relationship between state police and other security agencies.

The senator added that lawmakers must also clarify the role of existing paramilitary organisations in the proposed security framework.

“Also, we must address what becomes of the other organisations, especially including paramilitary organisations that were created for the purpose of helping to maintain law and order,” he said.

Bamidele said the core objective of state police was to strengthen community policing and improve security at the grassroots.

“The whole essence of trying to emphasise on the move for state policing is because we want community policing,” he said.

He, however, warned that the creation of state police would have limited impact without genuine local government autonomy.

“If we do not address the issue of local government autonomy, we will not have achieved much, even with the creation of state police,” he added.