A former federal lawmaker, Senator Ita Enang, has asked President Bola Tinubu to direct the Attorney General of the Federation send an urgent executive bill on state police to the National Assembly be promptly as a stand-alone executive bill.
Enang made this appeal in an interview on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics.
He said, “What I suggest Mr President should do. We should not wait for the National Assembly to finish the constitutional amendment process; we should not allow it to be part of those matters that will be considered by the Senate or the joint session of the National Assembly.
“Mr President should direct the Attorney General of the Federation to prepare an executive bill and forward to the National Assembly so that it will be treated as a stand-alone executive bill on state police.”
The former presidential aide said the executive bill should spell out the limitations of the functions of state police to federal police.
Enang said though he opposed the idea of the creation of state police years back because he feared that state governors would abuse it, state police is the solution to the multifarious security challenges like banditry and kidnapping in Nigeria.
“The time is now for us to voluntarily have state police. The food crisis we have is an insecurity problem,” he said.
The former federal lawmaker noted that, because of what is happening and the way it is affecting the economy, especially food, the President should consider the situation as a state of national emergency.
He urged that state police should incorporate state-owned security outfits like Amotekun, Ebube-Agu, amongst others.
Enang also called for the abolition of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) once state police is set up, calling the Corps an unnecessary addition to the number of security agencies in the country.
