The House of Representatives at its plenary session of Thursday, 12 July, 2018 urged the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to immediately deploy officers and men of the Nigeria Police Force to trouble spots and flashpoints where crimes are prevalent, as a palliative means to curb the spate of wanton killings, forceful occupation and proliferation of firearms in the country.
Hon. Rotimi Agunsoye (APC: Lagos) stated that there has been an unabated rise in the spate of killings and several other criminal activities across the country and that different criminal groups now converge, plan and brazenly execute crimes against people in Nigeria without fear arrest and prosecution, as the security agencies seem to be doing little or nothing to bring the criminals to book. He stated that if the trend is not addressed, Nigeria may become a thriving ground for not only indigenous criminal gangs who may become so emboldened as to become full-blown terror groups, but also a target location for international terrorist groups.
Speaking further, he expressed concern that notwithstanding the various security formations of the Nigeria Police Force and their collaboration with other security agencies, insecurity still pervades the nation. He proposed viable tactics to achieving a reasonable reduction of crime in Nigeria is to employ community policing and grassroots intelligence gathering, which can be achived through the establishment of State Police.
Hon. Agunsoye further stated that right to life and peaceful cohabitation of persons living in Nigeria should not be compromised and the Federal Government has a constitutional duty to protect the people and ensure peace and safety across the country.
Responding to the call for the establishment of State Police, Hon. Mohammed Tahir Monguno (APC: Borno) recalled instances of abuse of state institutions by State Governors and observed that state governments were already unable to fund the state institutions and this would add to the financial burden of States. Hon. Rimamnde Shawulu Kwewun (PDP:Taraba) suggested that the Nigerian Police Force could be reformed instead of creating State Police, which would only be transferring the problem and not solving it.
