The National Economic Council (NEC) has issued a September 9 deadline to four states yet to submit their reports on the establishment of state police. The decision was made during a meeting presided over by Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The Council plans to adopt a comprehensive report on state police from all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on Monday. States that fail to meet the deadline will have any decisions taken by the NEC imposed upon them. Acting Governor of Oyo State, Abdulraheen Lawal, stated, “NEC decided that those states must make their submissions on or before Monday next week; otherwise, whatever decision taken on the establishment of State Police will be binding on those states that refused to submit.”
Additionally, the Federal Government has released N3 billion to states affected by recent flooding. The funds are intended to provide palliative measures to mitigate the impact of the floods.
At the briefing, Lawal emphasized the security challenges across various regions, including the Northeast, Northcentral, Southwest, Southeast, and South-South, necessitating the establishment of state police. He explained, “An update on the establishment of State police was considered, and this was as a result of the security challenges that we have across the nation…so that we would have a robust security in our nation.”
Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State discussed the flood situation, acknowledging the federal support in response to the disaster. “The flood was more devastating along the Northeast axis where a major artery between Kano and Maiduguri has been cut off with devastating effects on households, schools, bridges, and other means of livelihood. Lives were lost, and a lot of properties were also destroyed,” Mohammed said. He emphasized the need for coordinated planning between government levels to ensure food security amid crop losses due to flooding, noting, “The bumper harvest may not be as envisaged.”
Furthermore, the Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, announced the reconstitution of the flood committee with new members, including governors from Kogi, Bayelsa, Oyo, Ebonyi, Bauchi, and Jigawa states, as well as various federal ministers and directors from relevant agencies. Sule highlighted, “The council has decided that Monday will be the deadline for all the states of the Federation to submit details of damages…for appropriate support to the various states,” He added.
