The Progressive Action Congress (PAC) on Wednesday commended the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) on its call for the creation of state police.
Its Chairman, Chief Charles Nwodo, made the commendation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
Nwodo said the Forum’s call for the creation of state police was long overdue because of its importance in combating crime in the society.
“ It is unfortunate that various panels set up for police reform in the past did not see the light of the day.
“This is seriously against the public interest seeking for police reform. The establishment of state police could have strengthened the police further.
“ Now that insecurity has become our major problem in governance, the adoption of the state police has become sacrosanct,” he said
The PAC chieftain said there was no way a police officer posted out of his ethnic zone could easily understand the language being used by the criminals in an unfamiliar environment.
Nwodo said the inability of such police officer to master the terrain in the rural areas would also compound his or her problems to locate the hideout of criminals.
He added that the state police contributed to the success of the first republic in combating crime, the government should take a cue from that to combat insecurity in the country.
He said the establishment of the state police would go a long way to bring back the lost glory of the nation that had since been facing a serious threat by some group of people.
According to him, if there are state police on ground, the activities of the Boko-Haram, robbery and kidnapping will not have been rampant as it is today. (NAN)