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By Lawrence Agbo
Security analyst, Tony Nyiam, has said Nigeria’s national security system is deeply compromised and require reforms to effectively tackle corruption and systemic failures.
Nyiam made the remarks on Monday during an interview with ARISE News, where he also described President Bola Tinubu’s initiative to introduce state police as a progressive step, while warning that the move alone will not solve the deep-rooted challenges affecting Nigeria’s security framework.
According to him, the current security system has gradually drifted away from serving the people.
“The existing national security structure is a compromised one. Because over time, it was serving a hegemonic power. It wasn’t serving the people,” Nyiam said.
Drawing from his international experience, the security expert cited examples from countries such as Scotland, India, Australia and Canada, where policing systems are largely decentralised and managed at the local level.
He noted that in Scotland, where he also resides part-time, the police operate as a civilian service managed by local authorities rather than a centralised national force.
“For example, my second home is in Edinburgh, Scotland. The police there are local government-based. It’s not a federal police or national police. It’s managed and funded by the Scottish authorities. In effect, the police is a civilian service, not a military force,” he explained.
Nyiam, however, cautioned that while the push for state police is commendable, it should not distract from broader reforms needed to address structural weaknesses within Nigeria’s security institutions.
“While welcoming what the president is doing by moving towards state police, that does not eliminate the gaps in our national security architecture. I must commend the president for being the first to make these moves,” he said.
He also called for the establishment of complementary expert committees to guide the operational framework of state policing, noting that relying solely on committees under the Inspector-General of Police may not adequately address emerging challenges.
Nyiam further raised concerns about funding and sustainability, questioning whether states that cannot fund their own police forces would be capable of managing such structures effectively.
The security analyst warned that introducing state police into a system already plagued by corruption could worsen existing problems if accountability mechanisms are not strengthened.
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“So should we tackle it? Because if we have state police without tackling the complicity, we’re not going anywhere,” he said.
He also emphasised the importance of public accountability in policing, citing systems abroad where citizens can hold police leadership directly responsible for performance.
“In some places, the people can fire the police commissioner if he’s not working. But in Nigeria, locals cannot remove their police commissioner. The system we have now encourages corruption,” Nyiam noted.
The security expert further highlighted concerns over overlapping jurisdictions among multiple armed institutions in Nigeria, including the police, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and various regional security outfits.
According to him, the country already has numerous armed structures, including community-based security groups across several states, which makes coordination and intelligence sharing more complicated.
Nyiam stressed that for state policing to succeed, Nigerians must be given greater control over how their police services are run, including participation in leadership selection.
“At the moment, Nigerians have no say in their police. They have no say in who is appointed Inspector-General. In a decentralised system, the people should have a role in choosing those who police them,” he said.
He also pointed to intelligence leaks and complicity within the existing security architecture as major factors undermining security operations.
“Sometimes information about security operations gets leaked and criminals become aware before action is taken. That remains a major challenge,” he added.
Nyiam concluded that while the introduction of state police is necessary, deeper structural reforms and stronger accountability mechanisms are essential for the initiative to succeed.
According to him, unless the culture of corruption and weak accountability within the security system is addressed, decentralising policing alone may not deliver the expected improvements in Nigeria’s security landscape.
