President Bola Tinubu has declared that establishing a decentralised police force is no longer optional but necessary.
Speaking on Tuesday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, when he received a delegation of prominent Katsina citizens led by Governor Dikko Radda, Tinubu said the federal government is taking decisive steps to strengthen security.
He directed security agencies to reassess their operations in Katsina following rising banditry, adding that advanced military hardware, drones, and surveillance technology would be deployed. He also revealed plans to upgrade the newly deployed forest guards.
Tinubu maintained that the country’s security issues can be resolved.
“The security challenges that we are facing are surmountable. Yes, we have porous borders. We inherited weaknesses that could have been addressed earlier. It is a challenge that we must fix, and we are facing it,” he said.
“I have today directed all the security agencies to energise further and look at the strategies. We have approved the additional acquisition of drones.”
The president also ordered daily feedback on security operations, stressing his administration’s resolve.
“I am reviewing all the aspects of security; I have to create state police. We are looking at that holistically,” he added.
“We will defeat insecurity. We must protect our children, our people, our livelihood, our places of worship, and our recreational spaces. They can’t intimidate us.”
The move for state police has been under review since February 2024, when a committee was set up. Information Minister Mohammed Idris said then that the president and governors had agreed on modalities.
By March, Vice-President Kashim Shettima noted that although all states supported the idea, 20 were yet to submit reports on its creation.
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