PRESS STATEMENT
STATE POLICE NOW IS A RECIPE FOR NATIONAL DISINTEGRATION — NIGERIA MISSED THE BUS
By Chief Malcolm Emokiniovo Omirhobo
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s call on APC Governors to support state police and local government autonomy, though politically attractive, is deeply problematic, poorly timed, and potentially fatal to Nigeria’s fragile unity.
It must be said plainly and without sentiment: Nigeria missed the bus on state police. That conversation should have been conclusively settled decades ago, particularly in the aftermath of the Aburi Accord and the lessons of the civil war. To resurrect it now, in a country fractured by ethnicity, religion, regional militias, and mutual distrust, is to play roulette with the survival of the Nigerian State.
At this stage of our national degeneration, state police will not strengthen federalism; it will accelerate disintegration. Power-hungry governors, ethnic champions, and regional strongmen will inevitably weaponise state police against political opponents, minorities, and perceived “outsiders.” The result will be lawlessness clothed in legality and repression masquerading as security
Nigeria does not need fragmented police forces loyal to governors. What Nigeria needs is a professional, accountable, and strengthened federal police system, insulated from ethnic capture and political misuse.
The sensible path forward is clear:
- Strengthen the Federal Police — funding, training, intelligence, welfare, and technology.
- Gradual decentralisation of command, not ownership.
- Defined constitutional roles for governors in security coordination, intelligence sharing, and operational input without balkanising policing authority.
- Firm federal oversight to prevent regional abuse and protect minority rights.
Let us be honest: the same political class that has destroyed local governments through state capture now wants to control armed police formations. If local governments are still appendages of governors despite constitutional guarantees, what then will become of state police?
State police today will not bring security; it will bring ethnic policing, political persecution, and eventual dissolution.
Nigeria cannot rush into structural experiments driven by political expediency rather than historical wisdom and constitutional realism. Federalism is not a slogan; it is a delicate balance.
This is a moment for restraint, not reckless restructuring.
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