State police won’t fix insecurity, Ezekwesili warns, urges full restructuring

Former Minister of Education Obiageli Ezekwesili has cautioned against viewing state police as a panacea for Nigeria's escalating insecurity, asserting that a more fundamental restructuring of the nation's governance is essential.

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The Tinubu administration’s renewed push for State Police has reopened one of the most consequential public policy debates in Nigeria’s democratic history.

In an open letter addressed to President Bola Tinubu, the National Assembly, and the Nigerian Governors' Forum, Ezekwesili argued that while the push for state police reflects genuine concerns over the failing security architecture, it mistakes a symptom for the disease. "The security crisis is real, but it is not fundamentally a policing crisis," she stated, emphasizing that terrorism, banditry, and kidnapping have overwhelmed the capacity of a centrally controlled police force.

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The country’s security architecture is failing. Terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, violent extremism, communal conflicts and organised criminality have overwhelmed the capacity of a centrally controlled police force to secure lives and property across a country of more than 230 million people.

Ezekwesili cited Afrobarometer findings, indicating that 79 percent of Nigerians consider kidnapping a serious problem, with many personally knowing someone affected. She described these statistics as indicators of a "profound crisis of state effectiveness and citizen confidence." While acknowledging the necessity of state police, she warned that it is not sufficient on its own. "The danger confronting Nigeria today is that the country may once again mistake a symptom for the disease itself," she wrote.

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Yet the fact that State Police is necessary does not mean it is sufficient.

The former minister contends that the root of the problem lies in Nigeria's constitutional order, which concentrates excessive authority, fiscal resources, and political power at the center. Despite being described as a federation, its institutional arrangements often function centrally. Ezekwesili advocates for a restructuring that addresses this imbalance, arguing it is the more sustainable path to resolving the underlying constitutional, governance, and political economy crises that have weakened public institutions and accountability.

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The danger confronting Nigeria today is that the country may once again mistake a symptom for the disease itself.