Organised labour in the textile industry has said any attempt to decentralise the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) into state institution is unacceptable stating that state governors have no moral basis to maintain critical institutions like the police.

Speaking under the umbrella of National Union Union of Textile Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN), the union maintained that the the on-going debate for and against a state police was diversionary and uncalled for, arguing that the debate should rather be on how to make the Nigerian police more effective.

General Secretary of the union, Issa Aremu, said many of the state governors calling for state police had not been able to manage any institution under them and therefore could not manage a state police.

“For instance, many state governors opposed the minimum wage for civil servants. Yet one of the problems of Nigeria police is the crisis of compensation. You can now imagine armed men and women embarking on strike over non-payment of minimum wage under a state police. The federal government with all the shortcomings pay minimum wage to the police.

He called on President Goodluck Jonathan to work towards ensuring a sustainable Federal policing which he inherited adding that the issue cannot be subjected to high-profile punching institution being witnessed in the country.

“Rather than the unhelpful debate whether for or against state police, let us support the effort to address the problems facing the Police in Nigeria namely poor funding of the police, increasing crime wave, the need for training and re-training, corruption within and outside the Police, community policing, public relations/image of the police, inter-service and agency co-operation, conditions of service and welfare of police officers and the need for a paradigm shift in policing among others.

“Therefore, governors’ efforts should be how to bring about good governance not to privatize the police to the state. All said, even with the best of policing in the country, we are dealing with physical security. Physical security without social and economic security for the citizens will not make Nigeria a secured place. With 50 per cent open unemployment, economic crimes associated with unemployment will undermine the best of police in the world,” he added.

http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/call-for-decentralisation-of-nigeria-police-unacceptable-says-labour/123351/