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The Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, has called on the National Assembly to take another look at the bill seeking to permit the establishment of state police with a view to make it independent of the Federal Government.
The group after its caucus meeting on Thursday in Akure, resolved to urge the National Assembly to simply place state police on the concurrent list of the Constitution.
While lauding the President and the leisure for their efforts at ensuring the bill, Afenifere noted that the bill contained areas that needed a review.
“However, there are some areas in the Bill that need to be reviewed. Areas that tend to make the proposed State Police appendages of the federal government. In other words, there are clauses in the Bill that tend to strengthen the stronghold of the federal government on state police rather than liberalizing it,” Afenifere said in a communique made available to journalists in Akure.
Afenifere maintained that what the National Assembly and the State Legislatures need to do is to place Policing on the Concurrent List.
The Senate recently passed the bill with certain classes spelling out limitations of state police to forestall abuses.
Despite the passage, it would require approval of two thirds of state Houses of Assembly before it comes law.
The senate has nonetheless, defended it’s tinkering with the bill, saying national security should take precedence over politics.
Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, in a statement on Sunday said the proposed legislation was “purely a child of necessity and not of political expediency as well as a product of national consensus and not of cynicism”.
While some political parties and groups have rejected the passage of the bill putright, Peter Obi, the Presidential candidate of the NDC had called for the suspension of the implementation of state police until after the 2027 general election.
Meanwhile, Afenifere raised concerns over the abduction of pupils and teachers in three schools in Oriire local government area of Oyo State as well as other kidnap incidents that are occurring in different parts of Yorubaland and Nigeria.
Afenifere, while sympathising with families of victims of the abductions, urged the authorities to work harder at ensuring that the abductees are freed as soon as possible.
“It’s about 50 days now that the incident in Oriire local government area occurred. It is a big pity that the victims have not been rescued up till now. We feel highly disturbed that these innocent Nigerians are going through avoidable trauma. Actions must be expedited to get them out of the den of the bandits as quickly as possible,” the group stated.
Afenifere also called on governors of the Yoruba states (including Kogi and Kwara) to take more decisive actions on insecurity that seems to be imperiling free movement in parts of Yorubaland among others.
The group also commended the efforts of the military and other security agencies on security issues in the land. It however recommended that security agencies be further strengthened with more equipment, morale boosting, enhancement of kinetic and non-kinetic security measures, among others.
It urged the government and security agencies, including the military, to look inward as insecurity continues to fester because there are internal collaborators, adding that such searchlight should also be beamed on local communities as there are collaborators among them as well.
“By the same token, sponsors of illegal mining should also be profiled as there seems to be allegations that people are being forced out of their lands only for mining to be taken place in the area almost immediately after the people were displaced by bandits,” the group noted.
Afenifere reiterated its position on restructuring, saying it believes that restructuring will greatly assist and hasten the realization of the noble objective of development.
The body however acknowledged the efforts of the Tinunu administration towards restricturimg, but urged him to do more.
“The meeting received the news of the attacks on some hostels of the Osun State University (UNIOSUN) with shock. We are shocked to learn that the attacks were allegedly carried out by army recruits from the Nigerian Army Depot, Osogbo, Osun State. As reported, the attacks resulted in robbing the students, man-handling some of them and inappropriately harassing some female students,” the communique also stated.
“It is gratifying to note that at least five of the recruits have been arrested as suspects. Afenifere is calling on the authorities to dig to the root of this incident with a view to ensuring that such a thing does not happen anywhere anymore.
“The body is highly disturbed in noting that this happened not from the notorious bandits that we have always heard about but from the hands of young Nigerians being trained to go and protect the citizens and defend their country. It is therefore very important to bring the heavy hands of the law on them as they are likely to constitute a great danger to the society. This incident also calls for proper rejiging of how candidates for positions in our security agencies are recruited and trained.”