State Policing: Abdulsalami, Jonathan, Others Grace Event As Dialogue Begins
Talks are currently on going at the Continental Hotels in Abuja over the idea of State Policing.
It is the beginning of deliberations on the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (alteration) Bill 2023 (Establishment of State Police).
The dialogue, organised by the Office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives and sponsored
by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu and 13 others is themed Pathways to Peace: Reimagining Policing in Nigeria.
Present at the occasion are Former military Head of State, Gen Abdulsalami Abubakar, rtd, ex-President, Goodluck Jonathan and retired Catholic Archbishop, John Onaiyekan, who are currently deliberating on state policing.
According to Kalu, the bill is designed to improve public safety and boost law enforcement in Nigeria by decentralising the police.
The proposal in the bill also provides for state police alongside the federal police and outlines a constitutional framework for states that choose to establish and maintain their service.
Kalu, who chairs the House Constitution Review Committee, explained that the bill “aims to clarify the scope of the powers and responsibilities of the federal and state police, and to provide for their funding and oversight”.
Leaders in attendance are: Vice President Kashim Shattima, who represented President Bola Tinubu; Sultan of Sokoto Sa’ad Abubakar; Ooni of Ife Enitan Adewusi; Governor of Kwara State and Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum, AbdulFatah Ahmed; the Minister of Police, Ibrahim Gaidam and others.
More to come…
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