The President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has said that the leadership of the National Assembly will no longer tolerate the unnecessary killing of Nigerians.

Presiding over Thursday’s plenary in the Senate, Lawan decried that the security of the country was being threatened by criminals.

He, therefore, demanded a complete restructuring of the security architecture of the Nigeria Police Force, as well as equipping police training institutions and training of men and officers of the Force.

 

A Sinking Fund

The Senate President stated this in his concluding remarks on a Bill for an Act to Repeal the Police Act and enact the Nigeria Police Bill, 2019 to provide for a framework for the Police Service.

He said, “We are in a very unusual time. When Nigeria was at war at one stage, there was a very rigorous recruitment of soldiers because the situation demanded that.

“I think we are in a similar situation and it is only fair for us as leaders of this country to take this challenge.”

“This bill should consider the restructuring of the command and structure of the Police. The present structure is not working, the Police Trust Fund is already accruing, the last count I was told there was about N52 billion or so, but it is not about throwing money to the Police.

“You need to adjust the structure, otherwise that money will just be a sinking fund,” he added.

 

The Right Side Of History

The Senate President stressed that the need for the government to be in a hurry to recruit, train and retrain security personnel.

According to him, equipping the police training institutions is supposed to be one vital aspect of getting the security arrangements right.

Lawan believed this must be done in a hurry, even if it means going for a supplementary budget.

“The kind of situation we are in, with the lives that are lost on a daily basis, is something we cannot tolerate, and in fact, we should be on the right side of history,” he stated.

The Senate President made the remarks after a debate on the bill sponsored by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Police Affairs. Senator Haliru Jika.

In his lead debate, Senator Jika explained that the piece of legislation sought primarily to provide for the framework for the Police Service.

He said it was also aimed at ensuring cooperation and partnership between the police and communities in order to maintain peace and combat crime and insecurity in the country.