Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN has renewed his earlier call for the creation of state police, just as he asked the Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government to tackle the deteriorating insecurity in the country.
Governor Akeredolu also warned that the 2023 general elections might be threatened if the insecurity situation worsens.
Featuring on Channels television’s Politics Today on Tuesday, the governor said he believes that the setting up of the policy structure at regional levels would complement the efforts of the Nigeria Police Force.
The ex-President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), however admitted that the outfit is not something that can come to force immediately.
“There must be a swift response to all this level of insecurity. For now, since there is nothing else to do, those of us who believe that there should be multi-level policing and the time has come for us to have state police, it is not something you can force down.
“It is something that will have to go through the National Assembly. It takes some time but that is the goal. But before then, I believe that we can have meetings, set up committees on insecurity. Let it be addressed wholesomely without any bias.”
Nigeria has been experiencing a series of security threats ranging from terrorism, banditry, militancy, cultism among others in several parts of the country.
Akeredolu, who is also the Chairman of South-West Governors Forum, condemned Saturday’s attack on his colleague governor from Benue State, Samuel Ortom, wondering why governors would be the target of attack.
“Definitely, we cannot conduct election under an insecure environment. So if insecurity is not nipped in the bud, it will escalate and if it escalates, all of us should be worried that as at the time we are getting to 2023, we might have a full-scale banditry and other insecurity in the country.
“Something just has to be done now to ensure that this issue of insecurity that is escalating by the day is now nipped in the bud and deescalated as soon as possible”, he submitted.
