The President of the Yoruba Ronu Leadership Forum, Akin Malaolu, has blamed Nigeria’s worsening insecurity on weak policing, porous borders and an ineffective immigration system, saying the challenges have created an enabling environment for terrorism and other criminal activities.
Malaolu said the country should have adopted state policing much earlier to improve security, particularly in rural communities, but argued that implementing the system now would be difficult under the current realities.
He expressed concerns over the proposed funding model for state police, noting that the planned Police Trust Fund would still be controlled by the government despite Nigeria’s growing debt profile.
According to him, inadequate funding remains a major obstacle to the successful operation of state police, raising questions about its sustainability.
Instead of creating state police at this stage, Malaolu urged the Federal Government to focus on strengthening the existing Nigeria Police Force.
He maintained that the President has the constitutional authority to adequately equip and support federal security agencies to effectively tackle terrorism, banditry and other security threats across the country.
Malaolu stressed that improving the capacity of the current policing structure, alongside better border security and immigration enforcement, would go a long way in addressing the nation’s security challenges.
