Nigeria have had centralized police force since independence. The result so far is that Nigeria have had inadequate security and ineffective enforcement of law and order around the country. It is not unusual to see police officers in check points around the country collecting bribes from motorist, motor cycle operators and ordinary Nigerians going about their business. The killings around the country by Fulani herdsmen is further testament that centralized police force in Nigeria is a failure. The senseless killings around the country and the level of lawlessness that has grown to epidemic level should concern all Nigerians and foreign countries that values human life. Nigeria will never experience any peace until there is a complete overhaul of Nigeria security and Police structure.
Why has centralized police force failed so badly? The primary reason is that Nigeria is a big country with large population, large landmass, diverse culture, different religious sects and different ethnic groups. Currently, Nigerian police men and women are sent to different parts of the country where they know little about the culture of the people they are protecting and in some cases are regarded as strangers by the local population. In some cases, the local populations have little in common with them. Local population will have difficulty passing intelligence information to the current police force which is critically important for effective policing. Locals cannot talk to the police if the trust is not there and if they are not sure their identity will be protected.
One does not have to be a rocket scientist to know that local population are in a better position to knows the criminals that lives in their mist. They know the culture and the terrain and will be more willing to forward intelligence information to somebody they know and trust. Also, they will be a sense of duty to do what is right for their people unlike somebody from a different part of the country who may want to do the right thing but will be hampered by some issues beyond his or her control.
The key for lasting security in Nigeria is decentralization of Nigerian police force. State governments should be mandated to establish their own police force, Local Governments Areas and all Towns and communities should be allowed to establish township or community police force if they wish. Federal Police force can stay, but they should be pulled back from most towns and their role should change from the primary agency that combat crime and enforce laws and order to standby force that will act as back up to state and local police force. They can stay close by so local and state police can call on them if confronted with a situation they cannot handle alone. There are no way state police can be overrun by criminal elements or herdsmen. Also, State and local police will be more proactive in crime prevention. Any criminal who escape local Govt. or township and community police force will be caught by the state or federal police force. Local and state police force are the only way forward for Nigeria. Doing same thing over and over and expecting a different result is insane and unrealistic.
The worst aspect of the current situation in Nigeria is that individuals, businesses and some state governments have established paramilitary security forces that are operating with no enabling law to guide their conduct and the consequence is that some of these paramilitary forces have turned into gangs and robbers that are now terrorizing the population. Why not formally establish state, Local Government Area, Township or Community police forces with laid down laws that will guide their activities and conduct. State and federal police commission could be entrusted with the responsibility of monitoring their activities and sanctioning them when necessary.
United States does not have federal police force. It is a country that is much bigger than Nigeria. City police and County police forces are at the fore front of law enforcement. Most of the crimes are solved by the City police and County police forces and the rest by the state police force which works closely with local police forces. Some might say that Nigerians have not matured to the point of having local and state police force. Doubters should be reminded that United States and other countries who are using local police forces to combat crime went through years of learning period before it started working the way it is supposed to work. Nigerian could have centralized investigative agency akin to United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) that are located around the country to assist local police force in conducting investigation, criminal background checks, crime lab analysis. State and local government police forces that has limited resources can be sending evidences to the centralized investigation agencies for analysis and rest.
Federal government and the general population must put aside their fear of the unknown and establish a decentralized police force like most advanced countries has done for decades and centuries. Nigerians are not less intelligent than citizens of those countries and will succeed in establishing effective police force if they can muster the courage to do the right thing. The fear that these forces may turn into tribal forces should be put aside.