Beyond “State Police”: Building A Police System Nigerians Can Trust

By Zik Gbemre

Across Nigeria, the debate about creating state police has gathered momentum. Committees submit reports, experts argue over federal versus state control, and policymakers discuss timelines for implementation. Yet for ordinary Nigerians, one hard truth remains: changing the structure of the police without changing its incentives, oversight, and consequences will only reproduce the same problems at a different level.

The crisis of policing in Nigeria is not primarily about naming, funding, or even manpower. It is about accountability, abuse of power, political interference, weak oversight, and a judiciary that is too slow to punish misconduct. Without confronting these root issues, state police will simply become many versions of the current problem.

The Real Problem Is Incentive, Not Structure

In today’s system, postings are treated as financial opportunities, the uniform often confers a sense of immunity rather than responsibility, and detention has quietly become a source of income in many stations. Oversight bodies are frequently populated by retired officers who protect serving ones, while political actors influence postings, investigations, and arrests. At the same time, the judiciary struggles to provide swift consequences when abuses occur. Under these conditions, creating state police without changing the incentive system will fail.

Remove Police From Regulating Police

No meaningful reform can occur while police officers, whether serving or retired, dominate disciplinary and oversight structures. Nigeria should establish civilian-led Police Accountability Commissions at federal, state, and local levels. These bodies should be made up of members of the judiciary, representatives of the Bar, credible civil society actors, credible human rights groups, and forensic auditors. Police must answer to civilians and the law, not to themselves.

Rethink Policing Into Three Functional Levels

Instead of focusing only on federal and state police, Nigeria needs a three-tier policing model that separates responsibilities clearly and reduces abuse at the street level.
1. The Federal Police should be small, police elite forces and focused strictly on terrorism, intelligence, border protection, and interstate crime. It should not be involved in routine patrols or checkpoints.
2. The State Police should handle serious crimes, investigations, and forensics within their territories. Their work should be investigative rather than street-level harassment.
3. The Local Government Community Police should become the backbone of everyday policing. This grassroots layer is what Nigeria currently lacks, and it is where trust can be rebuilt between citizens and law enforcement.

Elect Sheriffs at the Local Government Level

Borrowing from practices in parts of the United States, each Local Government Area should have a Community Police Service led by an elected Sheriff. The Sheriff should serve a two-year term, must be a long-term resident of the area, and be directly accountable to the people through elections and recall provisions. Such a person should not be a career police officer imposed from outside the community.

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When those who police a community live there and depend on the goodwill of the people for re-election, abuse becomes far more difficult. This approach also removes the unhealthy lobbying for postings to certain states because leadership becomes local rather than centrally assigned.

Make Abuse Costly and Immediate

Certain offences should attract automatic dismissal and prosecution because they directly undermine public trust.
1. Illegal detention beyond twenty-four hours without judicial approval should trigger immediate suspension and review.
2. Collection of bail money should lead to dismissal and criminal prosecution.
3. Checkpoint extortion captured through body cameras should result in dismissal.
4. Politically motivated arrests should carry personal legal liability for the officer involved.

A fast-track Police Offences Court should handle such cases within days rather than years.

Digitize Arrests and Detention

Every arrest should be digitally logged, time-stamped, and visible on a platform accessible to the judiciary and civilian oversight bodies. If a detainee is not recorded in the system, the detention should automatically be considered illegal. Body-worn cameras should also be mandatory for patrol and arrest operations to provide objective evidence where disputes arise.

End Posting as a Reward System

Postings should be computer-randomized, limited to two years per location, and protected from lobbying or political influence. No officer should serve repeatedly in the same state within a decade. This would break the cycle of favoritism, nepotism, and entrenched local interests that currently undermine professionalism.

Strengthen the Judiciary Alongside Police Reform

Police reform cannot succeed without judicial reform. A twenty-four-hour Magistrate-on-Duty system should operate in every state so that no suspect is detained beyond a day without judicial approval. Magistrates should have the authority to order immediate release through digital systems where rights are violated.

Remove Political Control From Operations

Elected officials, whether at federal or state levels, should have no authority to order arrests, postings, or investigations. Operational control must lie strictly within legal and civilian accountability frameworks.

Reform Recruitment, Not Just Salaries

Higher salaries alone will not end corruption. Recruitment must include psychological screening, financial background checks, community references, and a probation period monitored through digital audit systems. The goal is to filter out those attracted by power and access rather than service.

Leadership Accountability and Public Expectations

Public debate about policing inevitably intersects with broader questions of national security leadership. During the 2023 campaign, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu pledged to reduce killings linked to insurgency, banditry, and communal violence. Many Nigerians judge progress against those promises and express deep frustration where they feel insecurity persists. In a democracy, citizens are entitled to assess the performance of leaders, question unmet expectations, and decide at the ballot box whether an incumbent deserves another mandate. These concerns underscore why durable police reform, stronger judicial oversight, and reduced political interference are central to improving security outcomes.

Why State Police Alone Is a Myth of Reform

State police changes who signs posting letters. It does not change why officers abuse power. Real reform must change incentives, oversight, and consequences.

The Way Forward

Nigeria cannot reform its police from inside the police. The system must be civilian-controlled, judiciary-backed, and community-anchored. Until this happens, any new police structure risks becoming a new name for an old problem. What Nigerians need is not merely state police, but accountable policing that restores trust between citizens and those sworn to protect them.

Zik Gbemre
April 6,2026

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