Katsina State Governor, Dikko Umar Radda, has disclosed that every state should be allowed to establish its police command in order to address the security challenges confronting the country.
Radda made this call at a two-day ‘Roundtable on Insecurity in Northern Nigeria’ held at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre on Thursday in Abuja.
He stated that this would enable states to provide tight security for the people in their domains.
The Governor explained that allowing states to establish their police commands would replace existing security outfits created by some state governments to fight insecurity, despite the fact that they were not traditional law enforcement agencies.
He said, “The Northwest region, particularly in recent years, has faced an alarming surge in various forms of insecurity, including banditry, kidnapping, insurgency, and communal conflicts.
“These challenges have disrupted the lives of countless Nigerians and hindered economic growth and development in the area. Addressing this crisis requires a concerted effort and a unified approach, transcending state boundaries.
“To understand the significance of regional cooperation in the fight against insecurity, several factors must be considered. The first is the cross-border nature of insecurity.
“Our experience with bandits shows that they operate freely between Katsina, Zamfara, and Sokoto. Any effort to push them out of one state leads them to safe havens in neighboring states, and they often return to their original base.”
Lamenting the lack of information sharing among states, the Governor noted that the situation was contributing to a poorly-coordinated approach by different Federal Government’s security agencies operating in the region.
Radda said, “The regional approach requires targeted coordination towards socio-economic development to reduce poverty and associated insecurity. To this end, the Northwest governors approached the African Development Bank (AfDB) to solicit investments in agriculture and power.
“We are now embarking on an inaugural Northwest Peace and Security Summit in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to bring all stakeholders and our best minds together to find solutions to the ongoing insecurity in the region.”
