Gov. Lawal backs state police, says governors need real security powers

By Zagazola Makama

Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal has reiterated his support for the establishment of state police, saying the move would give governors genuine authority as chief security officers to effectively tackle insecurity in their states.

Lawal stated this on Thursday while speaking as a panellist at the Arise News Town Hall Summit on Building a National Consensus for State Police and National Security, held at the ThisDay Dome in Abuja.

The governor said the current security architecture limits the ability of governors to effectively respond to security challenges because they lack operational control over the police despite being constitutionally regarded as chief security officers.

“We’re being called chief security officers of our respective states; however, the command and control structure is not under the governors,” he said.

According to him, state police would strengthen accountability by empowering state governments to take full responsibility for the protection of lives and property within their jurisdictions.

“I am happy with the recent development of state police because it allows us to keep to our responsibilities and for our people also to hold us accountable as far as the security situation is concerned in our respective states,” Lawal said.

He expressed confidence that the creation of state police would significantly address Nigeria’s security challenges.

“I strongly believe that, by the time we have state police, it will go a long way in solving a lot of the challenges, and we can then bear our names as proper chief security officers of our respective states,” he added.

Addressing concerns that governors could abuse state-controlled police for political purposes, Lawal dismissed such fears, noting that many states already operate local security outfits without using them to suppress political opposition.

He, however, urged the National Assembly to incorporate adequate legal safeguards into the proposed framework to prevent possible misuse.

“I support state police. I recognise people’s fears of possible abuse, but with the right processes in place, those fears will be allayed,” the governor said.

The summit brought together governors, lawmakers, security chiefs, traditional rulers, civil society organisations, policy experts and other stakeholders to deliberate on state policing and broader reforms aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s internal security architecture.