Insecurity: State Police, Devolution of Power Way Out of Banditry and Insurgency - El-Rufai

Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai

The Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai on Thursday asked the nation’s security forces to take the war to the terrorists in forests that had been taken over by them.

El-Rufai also reiterated his call for the establishment of state police to tackle the spate of insecurity across the country.

The governor stated these at the Federal Government Town Hall Meeting on National Security which took place at the Kaduna State University on Thursday.

He said, “These bandits have lost their right to life under our constitution and must be wiped out in their entirety. There is no other way to approach the current insurgency situation today as far as governmental action is concerned.”

On the state police, El-Rufai said a situation where state bore most of the burden of the running costs of federal police was unacceptable.

El-Rufai harped on the devolution of more power and responsibilities to states.

He said, “Centralised policing in a federation is a contradiction. The state governments today bear most of the burden of the running costs of the federal police anyway, so why not the state police now. So I repeat my persistent call for state police as soon as possible.

“We should also devolve more responsibilities and duties to the states to enable greater accountability and minimise the habit of blaming the Federal Government for every ill in Nigeria. We should therefore expeditiously amend the Constitution to vest all on-shore minerals, including petroleum in the states now.