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TIIME was when Nigeria was grappling with an upsurge in armed robbery and a special police unit, the anti-robery squardron was created, its members given special training and later deployed to every state of the federation to curb the menace. At the time, while the battle raged between armed robbers and the police, innocent Nigerians were at the receiving end. However, the robbery incidents thawed when the police high police command at that time started ensuring that arrested robbers were brought before the media to confess their crime. This helped to reduce crime rate as criminals dislike being paraded before the press and before the members of the public. Examples were the case of Shina Rambo and Lawrence Anini (see my book, CONFESSION OF NOTORIOUS ARMED ROBERY IN NIGERIA).
Immediately robbers were arrest and paraded by police, it created a psychological effects on would- be robbers who, fearing the opprobrium and odium that they and their families would likely face following public exposure in the form of being paraded before TV cameras immediately had a re-think.
This brings me to the issue of state police. Imagine the devastating psychological effect and shame on families of criminals and the criminals themselves if every state’s police force adopts the practice of parading criminals before community members, religious organisations, social organisations, including youth groups. Such practice, I’m sure will greatly force families to have a greater grip on their wayward and criminal minded wards and will also place a restrain on intending criminals.
I’m delighted to note that at last, the National Assembly has agreed that police be move from the Exclusive Legislative List (strictly federal) to the Concurrent Legislative List (shared power between) federal and state governments). To this effect, the House of Reps last week overwhelmingly voted to endorse the creation of state police. The House of Representatives passed the State Police Bill (the Sixth Alteration Bill, 2026).The vote was conducted manually via a show of hands. It passed overwhelmingly with 288 members voting in favor and only four voting against, comfortably clearing the required two-thirds majority. This is quite commendable.
It should be noted that transitioning from a centralized federal model to a decentralized state policing framework offers significant structural advantages for Nigeria’s national security architecture. By aligning law enforcement with regional governance, this model addresses core operational inefficiencies, reduces bureaucratic latency, and optimizes response capabilities.
The primary strategic benefits of establishing state police forces include:
*Enhanced Local
*Intelligence and
*Community Trust
Staffing state police forces with personnel drawn directly from local communities ensures an innate understanding of regional dialects, cultural dynamics, and localized social structures.This cultural alignment strategically removes the friction often associated with federally deployed officers from differing regions. By embedding familiar personnel within the community, law enforcement can cultivate stronger informant networks, leading to higher-quality, actionable intelligence and more effective proactive policing.
Also it would enhance low-latency command and rapid rmergency Response. Moreover, decentralization removes the operational requirement for state commands to route critical security decisions through the Inspector General of Police (IGP) in Abuja.
Eliminating this bureaucratic bottleneck significantly reduces response times during active security crises. However, State Governors, acting as the constitutional Chief Security Officers of their respective jurisdictions (states) , would gain the immediate executive authority to deploy tactical personnel and resources to contain emergencies dynamically.
Personnel will remain stationed within fixed geographic boundaries over extended periods, allowing them to gain comprehensive operational knowledge of local topography.This eliminates the strategic disadvantage of deploying personnel unfamiliar with local choke points, forested terrain, or complex riverine networks. State police forces can effectively navigate and secure remote areas that have historically served as safe havens for non-state armed actors.
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Rather than applying a uniform, nationwide policing template, a decentralized policing framework allows individual state commands to tailor their training, equipment, and tactical doctrines to their specific regional threat landscape. State police system would surely help to nib insecurity in the bud. Infact, the new security system would go a long way in eradicating insecurity around the country. State police system as practiced in other climes has substantially helped in either reducing or eradicating crime in such countries.
In the case of Nigeria, state police will fully engage unemployed youth to safeguard their states. In other words, it will also be a source of employment for unemployed youths.State police will ensure that each State assumes total responsibility for the security of their citizens.
State or regional police system is not a new concept, many countries are currently practicing it and it has solved insecurity in such countries.
No doubt, the establishment of state police will be a welcomed development and in the overall security interest of the nation.
Security hints
Due to the high rate of insecurity in the country, Security File, in partnership with security agencies hereby publishes security numbers for the benefit of members of the public.
Security agents can be alerted, via the numbers, vital information on the activities of criminals, bandits and terrorists. Such information should anonymously be sent to any of these numbers as it relates to the crime:
1. Police: 07031179186
2. NDLEA: 080010203040
3. EFCC: 08093322644
4. Nigeria Customs Service:+234 703 789 1156.
Have a blessed, safe and crime-free week ahead.
