Push For State Police Politically Motivated – NDC Chieftain Buba Galadima

A Nigeria Democratic Congress, (NDC), Chieftain, Buba Galadima, has expressed the view that the proposed state police, will go the way of the past Native Authority Police.

Galadima made the remark on Tuesday during an interview on the ARISE News Morning Show.

The NDC chieftain cited his experience during the era of the Native Authority Police, alleging that the institution was abused to intimidate and detain political opponents ahead of elections.

“I was adult enough to see what had happened during the Native Authority Police.

“When elections approached, three months to the election, the Native Authority Police would gather all the opposition elements in their territorial jurisdiction and lock them up.

“Some of them, they would just say, ‘Oh, you have abused the Emir,’ or ‘You have abused the chief,’ or ‘You have abused the Judge,’ or that you were wearing shoes when your village head was seated on a chair. Then they would clamp all of them into detention,” he said.

Galadima, maintained that the alleged misuse of the Native Authority Police contributed to the migration of many people from parts of Northern Nigeria.

He further argued that the proposed creation of state police, which prompted a constitutional amendment now by the national Assembly, will not solve Nigeria’s insecurity challenges, and warned that it could instead be used by political office holders to suppress opposition.

Questioning the effectiveness of the proposed state police, Galadima said Nigeria’s security problems would not be resolved merely by creating another policing structure.

“If the Nigerian Police, if the Nigerian Military cannot solve security situations in Nigeria, I wonder how the state police would be able to do that,” he added.