TOWARDS EFFICIENCY AMONG INTERNAL SECURITY AGENCIES IN NIGERIA BY HASSAN MAIGARI IMAMU -

The Nigerian Constitution grants the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) broad powers under the “General Duty” clause, encompassing all matters related to crime and security. However, this open-ended mandate has led to a lack of focus, overstretching, and strain on the NPF. As a result, it is challenging to assess the police force’s overall impact on internal security, and the public struggles to define their core responsibilities.

Historically, the police focused on crime investigation, suspect prosecution, and guarding duties. Nevertheless, the current allocation of police personnel to internal security operations nationwide has yielded discouraging results. Police stations remain understaffed, compromising their ability to perform primary functions effectively.

Reforming Nigeria’s internal security architecture is crucial. Clear roles and responsibilities must be defined within the internal security apparatus. For instance:

The police should focus on crime prevention and control.
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) should prioritize guarding Very Important Persons (VIPs) and critical infrastructures.
The military should be deployed for counter-insurgency, anti-banditry, and related operations.

By assigning specific tasks to each agency, professionalism, efficiency, and effectiveness can be achieved, enhancing Nigeria’s internal security landscape.