Politics
#EndSARS: Why SWAT Is Not The Solution – Ekweremadu
Former Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to see the decentralisation of policing and the institution of state police as the lasting solution to the impunity and shortcomings he is currently trying to fix in the federal police.
Ekweremadu regretted that the Bill to amend the constitution to create state police departments, which he sponsored in the 8th Senate as well as the current Senate, had not received the required political support.
Reacting to the disbandment of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and proposed setting up of the Special Weapons and Tactical Team (SWAT), Ekweremadu, in a statement by his Media Adviser, Uche Anichukwu, on Wednesday, said the Federal Government was still addressing the symptoms rather than the real illness.
He said: “The ongoing street protests over the excesses of elements in the Nigeria Police did not come to me as a surprise. As a matter of fact, I had always known, and warned severally that a day would come when Nigerians would no longer tolerate the worsening insecurity in the land and the excesses of those charged with protecting lives and property.
“The problem with our policing and the attendant insecurity and excesses are engraved majorly located in Section 214 (1) of the 1999 constitution, which provides that ‘There shall be a police force for Nigeria, which shall be known as the Nigeria Police Force, and subject to the provisions of this section, no other police force shall be established for the Federation or any part thereof’.
“It is also worsened by Section 215 (2), which goes further to declare that ‘The Nigeria Police Force shall be under the command of the Inspector-General of Police and contingents of the Nigeria Police Force stationed in a state shall, subject to the authority of the Inspector-General of Police, be under the command of the Commissioner of Police of that state.
“This informed my Bill for the Creation of State Police with adequate provisions in the mode of financing, control, and appointments of the high commands of such state police services to insulate them from any forms of abuse and give citizens roles in the various State Police Service Commissions. Unfortunately, this has not received the requisite political support, I call on the President and political stakeholders, once more, to seize the opportunity of the widespread demands for police reforms by Nigerians to do the right thing, addressing the structural challenges”.
Continuing, he stated: “Nigeria is the only federal state with unitary police. It has never worked anywhere. It is not working here and it will never work.
“Therefore, whether we call it SARS or SWAT, we will only be addressing the symptoms instead of the diseases until we decentralise policing to allow citizens and the states take charge of the security of lives and properties of its people. This is the more reassuring way of addressing the mounting challenges of corruption, excesses, indiscipline, abuse, inadequate and poorly-motivated manpower as well as lack of equipment and security infrastructure currently bedevilling policing in Nigeria”.
The lawmaker added that one of the lessons from the END SARS protest was that Nigerians could always engender the changes they desired if they acted as one.
Delegates from Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba, and Yobe states were in attendance, as key highlights included speeches by Governors Mai Mala Buni (Yobe), Babagana Zulum (Borno), and Inuwa Yahaya (Gombe), who all praised President Bola Tinubu’s leadership, particularly commending him for supporting a northerner’s eight-year presidency.
The three governors collectively endorsed Tinubu for a second term, urging the north to return the favour in 2027.
However, tensions escalated shortly after APC North-East Vice Chairman, Mustapha Salihu, ended his speech by naming Tinubu as the sole candidate for the next election, without mentioning Vice President Kashim Shettima.
This apparent omission triggered protests from some members, who insisted that the vice president be included in the endorsement.
An attempt by Zulum to calm the situation did little to ease the rising tempers. The commotion intensified until security operatives intervened to restore order.
The party’s National Chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, later addressed the crowd, separately praising both Tinubu and Shettima, which helped ease the tension.
On May 22, 2025, 22 APC governors unanimously adopted Tinubu as the APC candidate for the 2027 election. The governors also did not mention the vice president during the endorsement.
But Borno South Senator, Ali Ndume, distanced himself from the endorsement of Tinubu for a second term in office.
He said he pitied Tinubu. According to him, former President Goodluck Jonathan secured the endorsement of 22 governors of his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in the 2015 poll, yet he lost his re-election bid to Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Osinbajo said due to the lack of preparation of leaders, politics has acquired a bad name in Nigeria.
He spoke at the 2nd Annual Daniel Taiwo Odukoya Memorial Lecture, held at The Fountain of Life Church in Lagos.
Osinbajo, however, noted that despite the disillusion, politics remained the pathway to leadership and influence.
He urged Nigerian youths to actively engage in politics as a vital tool for shaping the country’s leadership and bring about a lasting transformation.
“Politics has acquired a bad name, not just in Nigeria, but across the world. But the truth is, there is no other way to influence a nation except by engaging in the political process.
“If we are not involved in choosing leaders, shaping policy, or participating in political parties, then we forfeit our right to complain when outcomes don’t reflect our values.
“Many people go into politics with nothing, no plan, no knowledge, and end up achieving nothing. Leadership demands more.
“Nigeria’s transformation requires principled, informed, and active participation in the political space.
“This nation is not beyond redemption. But change will only come when citizens, especially those with moral conviction and vision, step forward to lead,” the ex-VP said.
“If the parliament is on part-time, then it means democracy is on part-time,” he said on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme. “There is no democracy that derides its parliament and thrives.”
He argued that the parliament is the bastion and fulcrum of democracy and no level of cost-cutting should affect the allocations that go to lawmakers.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmaker representing Ekiti South Senatorial District said beyond law-making and oversight functions on the executive, the 109 Senators in the Senate and the 360 members of the House of Representatives shoulder the responsibilities of their constituents.
He said, “The Nigerian parliament is not only for lawmaking; we do oversight function. We advocate for our constituents.
“It will just be bewildering that even out of the three arms of government that we have in Nigeria, it is only the parliament and parliamentarians that our people have access to. Like me and others.
“We go home almost every time and we are the ones when they give birth to a new baby, they ask for naming ceremony funds. When they are building a new house, it is from us they ask for assistance.
“So, if the parliament was not there, who do you expect that our constituents would run to? The parliament is not just to sit down at the plenary and make laws alone. And when we make laws, we follow it up.”
The Senate spokesman said the National Assembly is the soft target of every critic but vehemently opposed the reduction of the money paid to lawmakers.
“If we are on part-time, can’t the same amount of money be paid to part-time legislators?” he asked.
“We are in Abuja, is it the National Assembly that is giving us housing? Is it the National Assembly that is employing domestic staff for us? We are here on our own.
“We don’t get allowances for drivers. The allowances we get from housing are always deducted from our salaries. They give it once in four years and they deduct it every month.”
He also said the official vehicles lawmakers get weren’t registered in their names and weren’t for them. He, however, did not clarify whether lawmakers inherit the vehicles after their tenure.
In the past, controversy has enveloped the monthly earnings of federal lawmakers. In August 2024, Shehu Sani, who represented Kaduna Central in the 8th Senate, said he got ₦13 million as Senator while current members of the 10th Senate receive ₦21 million monthly. The upper chamber of the National Assembly immediately disproved the claim.
-
Entertainment4 years agoBBNaija: “Shameful For A Married Woman” – Boma, Tega Doing ‘Stuff’ Under Duvet Sparks Outrage (See Video)
-
Entertainment3 years agoSinger, Oxlade In Big Mess After His Sex Tape With A Strange Lady Surfaces Online (Watch Video)
-
Entertainment5 years agoBBNaija: Kiddwaya Sucks Erica’s Boobs, Licks Dorathy’s Neck In Truth Or Dare Game (Video)
-
Entertainment2 years agoI’m Not Ashamed Of My Leaked Nude Photos, Ifunanya Confesses (See Photos)
-
Entertainment5 years agoI’m Not Sick But Only Lost Some Weight – Kiss Daniel
-
Entertainment4 years agoHow Women Should Act During Sex – Actress, Blessing Okoro Reveals (Vdeo)
-
Opinion6 years agoOniru Of Iruland: The Making Of A Successor
-
Sports6 years agoEPL Epic Kickoff: How Teams Will Finish In 2019-2020 Season