State police inevitable, Tinubu declares

By Omodele Adigun

President Bola Tinubu has reiterated that the creation of state police is no longer optional but a necessary step to strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture in the face of persistent threats across the country.

Speaking on Tuesday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja during a courtesy visit by a delegation of Katsina indigenes led by Dikko Radda, the Governor, Tinubu said the federal government remains determined to confront insecurity “head-on.”

Tinubu also directed security agencies to reassess their operations in Katsina State, where banditry has been on the rise, and announced that advanced military equipment, drones, and surveillance technology would soon be deployed.

He also revealed that newly recruited forest guards in the state would receive capacity enhancement to boost their effectiveness.

“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,” Tinubu 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.

“I am reviewing all the aspects of security; I have to create state police. We are looking at that holistically,” he added.

Tinubu stressed that insecurity would not be allowed to cripple the nation’s development or disrupt the safety of Nigerians.

“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,” he declared.

The president further instructed that he be provided with daily updates on security operations in Katsina, underscoring his administration’s resolve to ensure the state and other troubled regions are secured.

Tinubu recalled that in February 2024, the federal government inaugurated a committee to develop a framework for state policing.

The initiative has received wide support, although as of March, 20 states had yet to submit their reports, according to Vice-President Kashim Shettima.

During the visit, Tinubu paid tribute to the late former President Muhammadu Buhari, describing his passing as a national loss while commending his contributions to Nigeria’s stability.

“The time we lost our brother, President Buhari, is a loss for all of us. It is the will of God Almighty, but he has left in a good way.

“He didn’t hand over a defeated country, a battered political structure, but a legacy of success, and that is the most important thing,” Tinubu said.

Governor Radda, who led the delegation, thanked Tinubu for his unwavering support.

“Mr President, I would like to thank you very much, and I want to say before our elders that there was never a time I came to the President with a request that he rejected,” he noted.

Other speakers, including Aminu Masari, former Governor and Ibrahim Ida, the Wazirin of Katsina, commended the president for honouring Buhari and investing in infrastructure projects in the state.

Ida, however, urged the federal government to prioritise the upgrade of Umaru Musa Yar’Adua International Airport and to intensify security efforts in southern Katsina, where communities have been under repeated attacks by bandits.