Yusuf Gagdi, a member of the House of Representatives, has raised serious concerns over the creation of state police in Nigeria, arguing that governors’ handling of state independent electoral commissions (SIECs) demonstrates they cannot be trusted with armed security at the state level.
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The National Assembly is currently reviewing the 1999 Constitution, with the creation of state police among the major proposals under consideration. President Bola Tinubu and several governors have expressed support for the measure, arguing it could help curb the nation’s lingering security challenges, including banditry, kidnappings, and other violent crimes. “I am reviewing all the aspects of security; I have to create state police. We are looking at that holistically,” Tinubu said earlier this month.
However, Gagdi, who represents the Pankshin/Kanam/Kanke federal constituency in Plateau State, warned that granting governors control of state police could lead to abuse, noting that they might use the force as a tool against political opponents. He cited the handling of local government elections by SIECs as evidence of governors’ inability to manage independent institutions fairly.
“No matter how you describe it, INEC has conducted elections in Nigeria where you have opposition governors,” Gagdi said. “There is no election conducted by INEC where the opposition does not win more than 10 of the 36 states in the federation. But tell me one state where the state independent electoral commission conducts elections and you have two percent of the legislative members at the local government level won by the opposition. Mention one. Irrespective of APC and PDP.”
Gagdi continued: “Mention one state governor who conducted an election, and you have one or two local government council chairmen that the opposition members win. It means that INEC at the national level is more transparent and better than state independent electoral commissions. Now, if governors cannot handle a state-independent commission fairly, how will you trust them with the power to control AK-47s at the state level?”
He questioned the implications of giving governors control over armed security: “If they cannot allow opposition to win in a relatively fair election, but instead take everything for themselves, strangling opposition, arresting and announcing the result they want, how do you give them state police? If you give a governor civil power to conduct elections and he uses it militarily, what if you give him military power?”
Instead of creating state police, Gagdi called for the strengthening of community policing, which is already recognized in the Police Act. He said community policing allows local communities to nominate representatives into the policing structure at local, state, and federal levels.
“We have community policing in the present Police Act. Why can’t we strengthen it?” Gagdi asked. He explained that under the current framework, communities are represented at the federal constituency, senatorial district, and local government levels. The council is chaired locally by the paramount ruler, while at the state level, the commissioner of police and the chairman of the council of chiefs jointly oversee the structure.
The lawmaker argued that community policing empowers people to secure their communities more effectively than creating state police. He added that with federal and community policing working together, citizens would have less incentive to violate the law.
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