Ondo State Governor Rotimi Akeredolu has called for a double policing system, stating that terrorists have occupied forests in the South-West states.
The governor expressed worries that following confrontations from other regions, terrorists are now moving southward to take refuge in the forest.
Akeredolu, who lamented the capacity of the Nigeria Police Force in handling the security situation in the country at the moment, reiterated the need for the creation of state police to ensure the security of lives and property.
He said that the Police Force is overstretched, understaffed, and cannot adequately secure the people.
It was gather that Governor Akeredolu made the observation while hosting the new Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 17, Yunnus Akeera, in his office.
The governor stressed that if the country’s security intelligence was strong enough, terrorists would not dare to attack the Kuje prison.
According to him, “We do not run away from the fact that the police force is overstretched. The same thing, we do not run away from the fact that a single police command in Abuja will not be adequate to police the large populace of the country. This has led to our demand for state police.
“We can complement each other. I have had senior police officers who agree on state police. Maybe they can’t say it in public. Go to Ekiti, and even here in Ondo State, most of the police stations have no vehicle. Look at the unfortunate incident that happened in Owo, police said they had no vehicle to pursue the perpetrators.
“Let us all sit down and agree that we should have a system that will create a division of labour. We can have the federal police and then the state police. You can face a major task like intelligence gathering and pass it to the state police to work on.
“What is happening? If not for lack of intelligence, people would not go to Kuje and attack the place in Abuja. We need your cooperation, too in this our cry for a dual police system that we can work together. People are moving down south to take refuge in our forest. You don’t have the men and officers to secure the country. The police are understaffed. We appreciate your limitations in terms of men, ammunition, and so on.”
In his remarks, the new AIG, Yunnus Akeera, accompanied to the governor’s office by the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Oyediran Oyeyemi, said he would continue with the good work the governor has done on security and deepen it.
