Northern Senators Push for State Police After Fresh Terror Attacks

Senators from Nigeria's northern region have called on the Federal Government and state governors to accelerate the passage and implementation of a State Police Bill, citing recent militant attacks that have claimed more than 36 lives across multiple states. The Northern Senators Forum made the appeal on Friday through a statement issued by its chairman, Senator Abdulaziz Musa Yar'Adua of Katsina Central, in response to violence in Adamawa and Sokoto states.

The lawmakers argue that a decentralized policing structure would strengthen security responses in remote communities where federal agencies struggle to deploy rapidly when threats emerge. They contend that the current centralized system has proven inadequate for addressing the pace at which violence develops in distant areas, particularly in the North where terror groups operate across vast territories.

The senators have specifically directed their request to the Presidential Working Group overseeing police reform, state governors, and state Houses of Assembly, urging each body to prioritize the State Police Bill. Recent killings in Plateau and Benue states preceded the attacks in Adamawa and Sokoto, illustrating what the forum describes as an escalating pattern of violence across the region.

The push for state police represents a longstanding debate in Nigeria's security architecture. The Northern Senators Forum's renewed emphasis follows what members characterize as a failure of existing mechanisms to prevent casualties, including deaths among security personnel and worshippers.

The State Police Bill remains under consideration but has not yet achieved the legislative consensus required for passage.