State Police, way out of worsening security challenge says Akinrinade

Irked by the worsening security situation in the country, a Former Chief of Defence Staff, Lt. Gen. Alani Akinrinade (rtd.), has asked the federal government to embrace state police by giving the leverage for all regional security outfits to metamorphose into state policing structures

Akinrinade specifically said such outfits as Amotekun in the South-West, Hisbah in the North among others should be effectively used to tackle the security challenges facing the country.

Akinrinade’s advice was contained in a statement by the Special Adviser to Osun state Governor on Civic Engagement, Mr. Olatunbosun Oyintiloye on Sunday, titled ‘Security should be community-driven – Gen. Akinrinade,’ and made available to newsmen in Osogbo.

He was said to have made the remarks in his Yakoyo, Osun State country home, while receiving a team from Osun state Ministry of Information and Civic Engagement, led by Oyintiloye.

The retired general in the statement also commended efforts of regional security outfits in tackling security challenges facing the country, adding that efforts to secure the nation should be community driven rather than based on centralised structure.

On the move to subsume Amotekun security initiative under community policing of the Nigerian Police Force, the elder statesman said a state should not be expected to use its resources to run a policing system that is not exclusively under its supervision.

He then suggested that a state should be allowed to use its resources for its own policing arrangement backed up by legislative enactments, which will help in checking the arbitrary use of the state policing structures.

“Policing system in every country is naturally meant to be driven through community structures for excellent and effective intelligence gathering which is the onus of security system.

“The centralisation of the security system by the federal government which brings about the enlistment of non-indigenous personnel into the policing structure of a state as against the use of indigenous individuals like the case of foreign countries has rendered Nigeria’s policing system ineffective and unproductive.”