APGA chair backs Tinubu’s call for state police

File photo of Sly Ezeokenwa

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The National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, Sly Ezeokenwa, has backed President Bola Tinubu’s call for the creation of state police, describing it as the only sustainable path to tackling Nigeria’s worsening insecurity.

Ezeokenwa stated this on Wednesday during a press conference at the APGA national secretariat in Abuja, where he praised the President for initiating constitutional reforms to decentralise the country’s policing framework.

Tinubu had last week urged the National Assembly to begin the process of amending relevant laws to allow states that are ready to establish their own police forces to do so.

The proposal was part of his declaration of a nationwide security emergency amid rising cases of banditry, kidnapping and violent crime.

Backing the President’s position, Ezeokenwa argued that centralised policing has failed to address Nigeria’s complex security challenges.

“The ultimate goal of any government is the security of lives and property. Personally, I am very glad that the President is also looking in that direction,” he said.

“From the very first day that I became the national chairman, I made it very clear that the only way you can achieve a water-tight situation in Nigeria is simply by decentralising the security architecture. It is very simple.

“It is an anathema that in a structure like Nigeria, every security architecture still revolves around the central. It is unheard of. I have never seen any federal structure in the world that runs on such a system.”

Ezeokenwa, who insisted that governors should have full control of policing in their states, said a chief executive cannot effectively secure a state when he is unable to hire or discipline security personnel posted to his domain.

“If you don’t have any say as to who gets posted to your domain, their remuneration and welfare, how do you hope to punish them when they err?

“Definitely, such a governor can’t have a firm grip on the security situation in his state. He will always be at the mercy of the Federal Government,” he said.

The APGA chairman also commended Tinubu for urging lawmakers to make “certain adjustments in the constitutional amendments needed to ensure the decentralisation of the security architecture in the country.”

Ezeokenwa further lauded the President for not interfering in the recently concluded Anambra governorship election, in which the incumbent governor, Chukwuma Soludo, secured a second-term mandate.

“We pay tribute to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, President Bola Tinubu, for not interfering in the Anambra election,” he said.

“The President made a commitment before the election that under him, there would be a free, fair and transparent election. And if Anambra happens to be his litmus test, we will score him more than 95 per cent. That was because the election was fair and credible.”

He also thanked the Independent National Electoral Commission and security agencies “for playing their roles in the most civilised manner.”

“I am one of those who have consistently maintained that the INEC we have today improved tremendously in terms of technological advancement right from the time of the immediate past chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, who actually spearheaded this improvement in our electoral system,” Ezeokenwa added.

The PUNCH reported that Governor Soludo swept all 21 local government areas to clinch his second term, polling 422,664 votes.

His closest challenger, the APC’s Nicholas Ukachukwu, scored 99,445 votes, while YPP candidate Paul Chukwuma garnered 37,753 votes. Labour Party’s George Moghalu polled 10,576 votes, and ADC candidate John Nwosu received 8,208 votes.

Although Tinubu congratulated Soludo and described his victory as “an affirmation of visionary leadership,” several opposition parties rejected the outcome, citing alleged vote-buying and institutional lapses that they warned could undermine the credibility of the 2027 general elections.

The PUNCH journalist, Adebayo, has over 20 years of experience covering politics, health, metro, entertainment and properties

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