Police formations across the country are groaning under poor financing – a development that further cripples the police at a time of heightened internal security challenges. For the first quarter of this year, police commands and formations have not gotten any money to run the humongous operations under them, Daily Trust investigation reveals.
The constitutional roles of the police are maintaining law and order and ensuring peace in the country. However, years of underfunding and poor management have rendered the police largely ineffective in carrying out its responsibilities.
Daily Trust recalls that about N500billion was budgeted for the Nigeria Police Force in the 2021 budget. President Muhammadu Buhari had, in the fourth quarter of 2020, transmitted a budget proposal of N449billion to the National Assembly for approval as the 2021 budget operations for the Nigerian police.
But the chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Police Affairs, Mohammed Kumo, during one of the budget defense by Inspector General of Police Mohammed Adamu, said the amount was grossly inadequate.
Daily Trust’s investigation revealed that despite this amount, state commissioners of police, area commanders, and their respective divisional police officers are made to source for operation cost to run their commands and divisions.
According to a cross-section of senior police officers and the rank and file interviewed by Daily Trust Saturday, the poor funding creates a pathetic picture, which they said made their job tougher.
Read More: https://dailytrust.com/n30-000-for-90-days-how-police-formations-groan-under-paucity-of-funds
