The security problem in Nigeria
This is how best I think that the security situation can be solved. The core problem in Nigeria is the inefficiency of the police force in investigating incidents for one, and secondly attacking criminal spots.
Now, the governor of my state, Akpabio, suggested state police, as many other people have suggested. His core argument was that federal police are not promoted or rewarded based on merit. State police is of course a big problem, because you do not want an armed militia under the control of a state governor.
A police force is supposed to be completely independent of the political system. It’s to be an autonomous institution that executes its tasks, irrespective of political interference. This has failed in Nigeria.
There is one institution that has worked partially in Nigeria - and that’s the EFCC. Now, that’s where we should look for an example. We have one thing that works, and one thing that fails.
And here comes my suggestion: Let each state be able to set up its own investigative body, and this investigative body is controlled by the state and it’s staffed by people who actually want to reduce criminality in the state. This investigative body is not armed in any manner, all they can do is investigate crimes and gather evidence.
There should be a secondary ‘evidence evaluation ministry’. This is a federal ministry that functions like a court, but is represented in each state. When the local investigators have enough evidence, they present it to the ministry, who then agrees that there is enough evidence for prosecution. In this case, they send a request in to the police to bring in all the participants for questioning. The ‘criminals’ are then docked to fast-track courts, where they can quickly be tried.
Now, should the police refuse to arrest the people ordered, then the state investigative body can then charge the local police with corruption in Abuja. Should the ‘evidence evaluation ministry’ throw out the evidence (they have been compromised), then the state police can again complain at federal level.
Basically, what I am advocating is an EFCC-like body in every state. The police have failed. There is too much legacy in there for it to change. Let’s take an example from what has worked.
