Tuesday June 16, 2026
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Former Inspector General of Police, Mike Okiro, has called for a comprehensive overhaul of Nigeria’s security architecture, warning that the country must adopt a new roadmap to tackle worsening insecurity after years of persistent challenges.

Speaking in an interview with ARISE NEWS on Tuesday , Okiro warned that the country’s security challenges have become deeply entrenched and require what he described as a “different roadmap”, including the possibility of drawing on specialised external support and restructuring existing policing strategies.

He said insecurity in Nigeria has persisted for more than 20 years without a lasting solution, stressing that it affects every segment of society and has created widespread fear and economic stagnation.

Okiro said:“We do it differently this time around. Is it that this problem that has spanned over 20 years, we have no clues, no solution? Probably. Is it time to bring in mercenaries like Goodluck Jonathan back? Now, the nature of this insecurity is not that I do it for years.

“ And some good governments are not that much. And I think it’s time. We call it spread speech. I’m not proposing to what we are doing in this country. Because the insecurity applies to everybody. Everybody faces it. No matter how big a house you are, there is this insecurity by the village. Because if it is good children, I feel it. Parents, I feel it. Workers, I feel it.”

He further argued that insecurity has become a national crisis that undermines safety, investment, and mobility.

“I think it’s time for government to really come up with a different roadmap on how to convert this insecurity in Algeria. The issue of mission is yes. There’s no country, even as big as even America has mission others. So people, if you feel you can also send an adventure, a loan, you have to be able to assist you.

“So if the government faces necessary for it to be misnourished, people who have the new house, who are knowledgeable to convert this insecurity to this country, they can do it. They can do it. But they relax and say it’s not something good for this country. We must proceed.

“We must move forward. When there is insecurity nobody can move forward. They will be afraid to go out. Even if an investors cannot come in, you can invest in a situation where the lives and property are not secured.”
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Okiro insisted that government must urgently act, warning that insecurity will continue unless deliberately tackled.

“So I think the government has to wake up, and it’s going to be there for a long time. But we tackle it each time when government should tackle it.”

On the ongoing debate around the creation of state police, Okiro said the issue must be approached with caution, noting that Nigeria previously operated regional policing structures before they were centralised.

“The issue of state police. Look at what has happened in the past. Before the military regime had the regional police and all that. But good administration came and unified the state police force. But then we found that there are some loopholes.”

He identified chronic underfunding, manpower shortages, and lack of equipment as major weaknesses affecting the Nigeria Police Force.

“One is that the police are not well funded. The police don’t have enough manpower. The police don’t have equipment. This is because the federal government has so many problems. The police is just one of them. And you can realise why there is a crisis in Nigeria.”

Okiro said neglect of the police system has worsened insecurity across the country.

*ARISE News