State Police Bill: Senator Faduyile commends NASS, says bill to combat insecurity
By Steve Ovirih.
Ondo South Senator, Distinguished Senator Prof. Dayo Faduyile, OON has described the passage of the State Police Bill by the National Assembly as “a bold and historic step toward rescuing Nigeria from the grip of insecurity,” commending lawmakers for their commitment to seeing the legislation through.
Speaking with correspondents in Lagos on Thursday, Senator Faduyile said the move reflects a growing national consensus that centralised policing can no longer cope with the realities of banditry, kidnapping, and communal clashes across the country.
“The National Assembly deserves commendation for boldly confronting the challenges of insecurity across Nigeria by legislatively building a consensus around the ideal of State Policing and refusing to kick this can down the road any longer.
“For too long, we have pretended that one police command in Abuja can effectively secure 36 states with diverse terrains, cultures, and threats. The State Police Bill is not about politics. It is about survival,” the Ondo South Senator noted.
He argued that granting states constitutional powers to establish and fund their own police, with clear oversight mechanisms, will bring policing closer to the people and improve response time.
“What we need now are safeguards: recruitment standards, human rights training, and an independent complaints commission, so that state police do not become political militias.
“If we get the architecture right, this bill will see the light of day and become the turning point in our national security architecture,” he added.
The former NMA president also urged state governors to resist the temptation to abuse the new structure, noting that “security is too important to be sacrificed on the altar of partisanship.”
It will be recalled that The State Police Bill, which seeks to amend relevant sections of the 1999 Constitution has scaled key legislative hurdles and is awaiting concurrence and presidential assent.
