Former President Goodluck Jonathan has stated that in view of the prevailing circumstances, the establishment of state is non-negotiable, and that the debate should immediately shift to how to ensure it won’t be abused by state governors.
Jonathan’s position is at variance with that of the Inspector General of police, Kayode Egbetokun, who opposed the establishment of state police.
Jonathan who stated this on Monday at the ongoing dialogue on state police organized by the House of Representatives, said most times governors abuse institutions, but however noted that the challenges are not sufficient to stop the creation of state police.
The former president said state police was wildly accepted by the delegates at the 2014 Confab.
“We can only end kidnapping and other forms of insecurity through the creation of state police,” Dr Jonathan said.
Earlier, in his opening remarks, the Deputy Speaker of the House, Ben Kalu argued that the current security situation in Nigeria requires a multilayer approach to insecurity.
He stated that over N5 billion has been paid in ransoms to kidnappers, a figure that starkly exposes the alarming growth of this criminal enterprise in the country.
