Senate Wants FG To Introduce State Police To Stop Banditry.

 The Nigerian Senate has urged the Federal Government to introduce state police saying it is the only solution to the crisis in the North-West geopolitical zone.

According to Punch, the Senate took the position following separate motions moved by senators Emmanuel Bwacha from Taraba State and Kabir Marafa from Zamfara State over the rise of killings and kidnapping in the region.

While Marafa, who recently lost his sister in Zamfara attack lamented the killings of his people by bandits in the state, Bwacha called the attention of the Senate to the inability of security agencies to end kidnapping in Taraba.

Reacting to the motions moved by the senators, the Senate President, Bukola Saraki said that apart from establishing community or state police, funding of the Nigeria Police Force was essential to tackle end the menace, Punch reports.

“From the contributions we have had, I think it is key that we begin to look at the problem and look for long-term solutions. I think that what we did yesterday (Tuesday) in trying to strengthen the funding of the police through the Police Reform Bill is right.

“The sooner that we can pass that bill will also help us in addressing the insecurity challenges. “But more importantly is that we must go back to what a lot of us had been advocating here that there is the need for us to have state or community police. It is the way forward. Otherwise, we will continue to run into these problems.

“On the area of oversight, there is a lot also that we need to do to ensure that we hold the security agencies accountable. And we need to move very fast in this area,” he said.

In its resolution, the Senate Nigerians for coming out to protest against killings in Zamfara regardless of their cultural, religious and ethnic differences.