Presidency's Moghalu Addresses State Police Concerns

Nnadubem Moghalu, the senior special assistant to the President on Planning and Research and secretary of the Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill, spoke at the 2nd Annual Distinguished Parliamentary Award and Lecture Series organized by the House of Representatives Press Corps in Abuja. He reassured Nigerians that the proposed state police would not be subject to abuse by politicians or influential figures.

Moghalu acknowledged the concerns regarding potential misuse, stating that the framework for state police is designed to function effectively regardless of political office holders. He highlighted the current police-to-citizen ratio in Nigeria, which is approximately one officer for every 650 citizens, compared to the international benchmark of one officer for every 400 citizens.

Moghalu argued that state police are necessary to address community-level issues while the Federal Police manages crimes that cross state lines. He warned that the reform would fail if it merely replicated existing weaknesses at the state level.