By Ike Uchechukwu
CALABAR — A retired Commissioner of Police, Balarabe Sule, has expressed concerns over the viability of the proposed state police system, warning that inadequate funding and potential abuse by state governors could undermine its effectiveness.
Sule spoke while reacting to the Senate’s passage of the executive bill establishing state police, saying that although the initiative has the potential to improve security and reduce crime, several challenges could hinder its successful implementation.
According to the former police chief, many states may struggle to provide the financial resources required to recruit, equip and adequately remunerate personnel under the new policing structure.
“I can tell you that many states will not have the resources to equip and pay the remuneration of those to be employed to function effectively,” he said.
Sule identified inadequate funding, corruption, abuse of power by governors, conflict of interests and lack of operational uniformity across states as major threats to the success of state policing.
He noted that poor welfare packages and irregular payment of salaries could expose officers to corruption and compromise their effectiveness.
“When officers are not paid well and on time, they become vulnerable to corruption. You cannot expect an officer who is poorly paid and inadequately equipped to perform optimally,” he stated.
The retired commissioner also expressed concern that governors could misuse state police formations to target political opponents and critics.
“I fear that state police may be subjected to abuse by the governors who fund them, regardless of whatever checks and balances are put in place,” he said.
Sule further argued that varying economic realities and administrative capacities across the 36 states could make it difficult to maintain uniform operational standards nationwide.
According to him, the absence of a common framework may create disparities in policing effectiveness from one state to another.
Despite his concerns, he acknowledged the advantages of community-based policing, noting that officers recruited from local communities would possess better knowledge of their environment and valuable intelligence on criminal activities.
“In your locality, you practically know everyone and where crimes are likely to occur. Recruitment should be structured in such a way that indigenous officers serve within their communities,” he said.
Sule maintained that while state police could enhance grassroots security and intelligence gathering, strong safeguards, sustainable funding mechanisms and effective oversight would be essential to prevent abuse and ensure professionalism.
