Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State announced that the Southern Governors’ Forum has collectively endorsed the establishment of state and community policing to address rising security challenges in Nigeria. The forum, comprising governors from the South-West, South-South, and South-East regions, convened on Monday in Abeokuta to deliberate on various issues, including security.
“So, that was something that we discussed. We all spoke with one voice in support of state policing,” Governor Abiodun stated during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today. He added, “We spoke with one voice in support of regional security outfits which almost all regions have set up and that are working hand in glove with the law enforcement agencies and providing them with intelligence and support.”
The push for state and community policing comes amid escalating security threats, including kidnapping for ransom and other crimes. Despite concerns that state policing could be misused by governors for intimidation or victimization, Abiodun emphasized its necessity for socio-economic development. “If indeed, we are going to be talking about how to enhance our socio-economic development as a region,” he remarked, “we all know that we cannot have any meaningful development in the atmosphere of insecurity.”
Governor Abiodun highlighted the current limitations faced by governors, who are designated as the chief security officers of their states but have minimal control over the police forces in their jurisdictions. “If the situation requires an emergency response, that lag between reporting to the IGP and coming back to us (governors) may have brought the state to some level of harm,” he explained.
The call for state policing aims to enhance the responsiveness and efficiency of security operations at the state level, ensuring faster and more tailored responses to local security issues.
Governor Abiodun was recently elected as the new chairman of the Southern Governors’ Forum, succeeding the late Arakunrin Rotimi Akeredolu. The meeting in Abeokuta marked the first gathering of the forum in nearly three years.
