Keep up with the latest news and be part of our weekly giveaways and airtime sharing; follow our WhatsApp channel for more updates. Click to Follow us

A prominent figure in the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Buba Galadima, has accused President Bola Tinubu and state governors of pursuing the establishment of state police for political purposes ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Galadima alleged that the proposed security structure could eventually be used to intimidate opponents and influence the political landscape.

He made the remarks on Tuesday while appearing on Arise Television’s Morning Show.

According to the NDC chieftain, the creation of state police would introduce additional challenges rather than provide solutions to the country’s security concerns.

He expressed doubts about the effectiveness of state-controlled police formations in addressing insecurity, especially when existing security institutions continue to struggle with the problem.

Galadima questioned how newly created state police agencies would succeed in combating criminal activities if the Nigerian Army and the Nigeria Police Force have not been able to fully contain the security situation.

He said: “Nobody ever conceived the idea of state police to sort out our security challenge, if the Nigerian police, the Nigerian military can’t solve the security situation in the country, I wonder how the state police would be able to do that.

“All that we know is that the President and governors are looking for state police before the election so that they use them as political thugs to attack the opposition, disarm the election, and kill democracy.

“I was adult enough to see what happened during the native authority police. When elections approached, three months to election, the native authority police will gather all opposition elements in their territorial jurisdiction and look them up. Some of them will say you have abused the emir, judge or you are wearing shoes when your village head was seated on the chair, then they would send all of them into detention.

“Most Hausa people that you see all over Nigeria and Africa where the spillover of the misuse of the native authority in Northern Nigeria and that is why they needed to run for their dear life and hide elsewhere.

“The state police can be used to destroy the unity of this country because there are certain states where only one tribe or religion would constitute the state police such that other people from the other parts of the country would have no liberty to do their business as enshrined by the constitution.

“The state police for me would create more problems and divisions.”

The former political ally of several northern leaders maintained that the proposal requires careful consideration, warning that it could be vulnerable to political manipulation.

His comments come amid ongoing national debates over the proposed establishment of state police, with supporters arguing that it would strengthen local security, while critics fear it could be abused by political office holders.

The issue has continued to generate reactions across political and security circles as discussions on constitutional amendments and security reforms intensify ahead of the 2027 elections.

Please don’t forget to “Allow the notification” so you will be the first to get our gist when we publish it. 
Drop your comment in the section below, and don’t forget to share the post.