Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has said that governors will demand a new revenue allocation formula once state police is adopted.
Speaking in an interview on Channels Television programme, ‘Sunday Politics’, the governor stated that funding could be an issue for governors to pursue the adoption and implementation of state police.
This follows strident calls for state police nationwide in the last few weeks.
Recall that some governors and regional socio-political groups like Afenifere and Ohanaeze Ndigbo have been saying the adoption of state police would curb the increasing spate of kidnapping, banditry and other crimes that are rife in the country.
President Bola Tinubu and the governors of the 36 states in mid-February agreed on state police as a method to curb the escalating security challenges in the country.
Already, 16 governors have submitted their reports to the National Economic Council (NEC), expressing their support for the creation of state police and the amendment of the 1999 Constitution to allow for state police.
Meanwhile, it is estimated that the Federal Government gets a total of 52.68 per cent; states 26.72 per cent, while the local government councils appropriate 20.60 per cent of the country’s monthly revenue allocated by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC).
The commission operates under the Presidency, and disburses the funds provided by the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).
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Speaking of the state police, Governor Sule said, “I went to school, grew up, and went to school in a country where it is not even state police; you have county police, which are local government police.
The institution I attended, Indiana University, had Indiana University Police.
“So, I grew up in the background of this independent police and distribution. Sometimes, we just see what is happening in other countries, and we just want to adopt.
“My concern about state police, and it is not like I am against it; I am all for it but my biggest concern about state police is funding the state police.
“The next thing after we adopt this state police; you will hear the state governors asking for a review of the sharing formula.
‘’And you still have the military and other security agencies under the Federal Government. What we are getting right now may not be sustainable.”
Governor Sule said Nasarawa is one of the states yet to submit memoranda on state police to the National Executive Council (NEC) because the state is still consulting with stakeholders.
He said, “We are one of the 20 states that are yet to submit. It’s not that we are against it, it’s not that we are for it. We are still in consultation.”
