The Convener of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Ideological Group (BATIG), Honourable Bamidele Atoyebi, has thrown his weight behind President Tinubu’s push for the creation of state police, declaring that the establishment of the system would address between 90 and 95 per cent of Nigeria’s security challenges, insisting that no other security reform holds greater potential for tackling insecurity across the country.

Atoyebi stated this while reacting to comments made by a security expert during a television programme on Arise TV, where it was argued that state police would not solve up to 10 per cent of Nigeria’s security problems. He also reiterated the position in a separate news commentary, describing the issue as a pressing national concern.

According to him, the creation of state police would strengthen local intelligence gathering, improve commitment among security personnel, curb political sabotage, and ensure that communities take greater responsibility for protecting their territories.

He argued that many of Nigeria’s security challenges stem from structural weaknesses within the current policing system, including poor welfare, lack of motivation, inadequate local knowledge, political interference, and the recruitment of personnel who have little passion for policing.

“State police is all we need to address most of our security challenges. When people are recruited to protect their own communities, local governments and states, they will naturally be more committed and passionate about the job,” Atoyebi said.

He maintained that many security personnel currently serving in various parts of the country were not originally interested in policing but joined the force due to unemployment and lack of alternatives.

According to him, improving police welfare and salaries would help attract genuinely interested candidates, but state policing would go a step further by ensuring that there is a buy in by officers who have a personal stake in defending their communities.

Atoyebi, described as a political social worker, noted that local hunters and vigilante groups across the South-West have continued to demonstrate exceptional commitment in combating criminal activities despite receiving little or no remuneration.

He cited ongoing efforts by Yoruba hunters to track kidnappers and rescue abducted victims as evidence that people are more determined when defending their ancestral lands and communities.

The Yoruba proverb, “Onilu o ni fe ki ilu re tu” (meaning that no true indigene of a community will sit idly by while their homeland is overrun by terrorists), was also referenced in broader commentary attributed to Atoyebi to illustrate the importance of local ownership in security matters.

He further explained that because local people know their terrain, landmass, and environment very well, they are better positioned to confront security threats effectively within their localities.

“There is a clear difference between having passion for a job and having passion to defend your people, your community and your ancestral land. That is why many local security volunteers continue risking their lives to protect their communities,” he said.

In an extended personal reflection shared alongside his position, Atoyebi recounted a 2010 incident in which he said he was defrauded and attempted to rely on the conventional policing system for response.

He described an experience at a police station around 4:00 AM where, according to him, an officer on duty was asleep and responded dismissively when awakened. He further claimed that the officer was not originally from the state where she was deployed, using the experience to argue that personnel unfamiliar with local environments may lack emotional commitment to the communities they serve.

He also referenced a separate anecdote involving a Lagos-based police officer who allegedly admitted in 2018 that officers sometimes face strong temptations to compromise their duties when confronted with large financial inducements, using it to illustrate risks of corruption within a centralised system.

Atoyebi argued that such challenges would be significantly reduced under a state policing structure, where officers would be recruited locally and have stronger ties to their communities.

A major gap in the current security architecture, according to him, is the absence of effective monitoring at state and local government boundaries. He argued that a decentralized system would help regulate internal migration, monitor movement between states and local government areas and improve identification and tracking of individuals entering rural communities.

He also warned that the centralised policing structure is vulnerable to sabotage and inducement, particularly when officers are deployed far from their places of origin and lack emotional attachment to host communities. He further noted that poorly motivated officers may be susceptible to financial compromise from criminal networks or political actors.

Atoyebi cited examples from ongoing discussions on security reform, suggesting that some initiatives such as forest security operations have faced operational challenges due to recruitment and deployment issues. In related commentary, he referenced concerns that certain state-level forest guard initiatives, including in Kwara State, have struggled with questions around whether personnel were properly drawn from local communities, arguing that local representation is critical for effectiveness and public trust.

He added that such a structure would also complement ongoing decentralisation efforts in Nigeria’s governance and security architecture under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, which has included increased subnational involvement in security management and consultations on policing reforms.

According to him, decentralised recruitment done within states rather than across distant regions would improve efficiency and effectiveness, contrasting it with current challenges affecting some federal auxiliary security initiatives, including recruitment and deployment issues in forest security operations.

Atoyebi further suggested that Nigeria could strengthen its security architecture by establishing structured police training centres across the country’s geopolitical zones, alongside improved coordination with existing national institutions such as the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), to ensure more regionally balanced training and operational readiness.

He maintained that the president should also ensure strict oversight in recruitment processes to guarantee that only suitably committed personnel are selected in states facing severe security challenges.

The BATIG Convener noted that local hunters and vigilante groups across the South-West have continued to demonstrate exceptional commitment in combating criminal activities despite limited resources.

He cited ongoing efforts by Yoruba hunters to track kidnappers and rescue abducted victims as evidence that people are more determined when defending their ancestral lands and communities.

Atoyebi further argued that state police would reduce cases of political and financial compromise among security personnel, stating that officers recruited from local communities would be less willing to collaborate with criminals seeking to destabilise their own areas.

He added that the reform would also improve accountability among governors and local government chairmen, as citizens would be able to directly assess the performance of leaders responsible for security within their jurisdictions.

“If a governor cannot secure his state under a state police structure, the people will know who to hold accountable. It will help us stop electing unserious governors and local government chairmen,” he stated.

The political social worker also linked the proliferation of various armed groups across the country to feelings of neglect and exclusion, arguing that many youths currently involved in self-help security arrangements would be willing to join formal state police structures if given the opportunity.

On the ongoing efforts to establish state police, Atoyebi commended President Bola Tinubu for pushing the reform, noting that the administration has made significant progress toward creating the constitutional framework required for implementation.

On June 4, 2026, the Presidency disclosed that consultations on state police, initiated on the directive of President Tinubu, have reached an advanced stage, with constitutional amendments expected soon.

Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, said discussions over the past three to four months have produced substantial progress and that the legal framework for state police is nearing completion.

Atoyebi urged Nigerians not to be discouraged by critics of the proposal, insisting that state police remains the most practical solution to addressing insecurity at the grassroots level.

“Nobody should discourage state police. It is the only and best way to tackle insecurity at the local level, stop criminals from moving freely across communities and strengthen accountability in governance,” he said.

He stressed that while no security system can completely eliminate crime, state police would significantly reduce kidnapping, banditry and other criminal activities by bringing security closer to the people, improving response times, leveraging local terrain knowledge, and enhancing community-driven policing anchored on decentralisation and local passion for service.