Confab scraps LGs, okays state police

The conference said states can now establish, finance and control their own police force if they so wish. The conference on the other hand said states can create their local governments “as they deem necessary.”  The delegates took these decisions while considering reports of its committees on Politics and Governance and that of National Security.  […]

The conference said states can now establish, finance and control their own police force if they so wish.
The conference on the other hand said states can create their local governments “as they deem necessary.”  The delegates took these decisions while considering reports of its committees on Politics and Governance and that of National Security.   
It said the areas of jurisdiction of the Federal Police will cover the entire country and on clearly spelt out matters and offences, while the jurisdiction of the State Police will cover the state and operate within the laws enacted by the State Assembly.
The conference agreed that in addition to establishing state police, states laws should also provide for community policing.
When established, the conference said, state police are to compliment the efforts of the Nigeria Police Force.
This decision, when enacted into law, would end debate over the establishment of state police.
It was agreed also that state governors should be involved in the running of the Federal Police in their respective states.
It was the conference decision that operational component of the police, particularly from officers of the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police in the Federal Police should be deployed to their states of origin to address the concern of language and culture.
 To make the police more civil and friendly, the conference called for the amendment of section 214 of the 1999 Constitution so that The Nigeria Police Force will be changed to The Nigeria Police.
 On governance, the conference “adopts a true federal structure with the states operating as federating units.”
It was resolved that “creation of local government councils should be done by the states as they deem necessary.”
The delegates also agreed that “the states by law provide for the structure, composition, finance and functions of the local government councils.”
The National Security committee was headed by former Inspector General of Police, Muhammadu Gambo Jimeta and former Director General of the National Intelligence Agency, Chief Albert Horsfall while Professor Jerry Gana and Chief Olu Falae co-chaired that of Politics and Governance.
 The state police and local government status are among the two contentious issues that generated heated debate tearing the delegates into North-South divide.
Northerners believe that state police would be abused by state governors while their southern colleagues believed otherwise.
Whereas the southern delegates called for the scrapping of local governments, their northern counterparts kicked.
 While the voting on the two issues was done yesterday, only Professor Auwalu Yadudu raised objection to the conference decision on local government status, arguing that the conference needs not to dabble into the issue now because Political Restructuring and Forms of Government committee had made elaborate provisions on it.
But Yadudu was overruled by the conference deputy chairman Professor Bolaji Akinyemi.