Ondo attorney-general Kayode Ajulo backs state police, urging lawmakers to act as insecurity rises across Nigeria

The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Ondo State, Kayode Ajulo SAN, declared on Thursday that Nigeria must adopt state policing as a matter of urgency, aligning with President Bola Tinubu’s call for a legal review to allow states to create their own security agencies.

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Ajulo made the statement in Abuja as he backed the need for decentralised security, emphasising that only state police can effectively manage the country’s diverse and escalating threats. This firm position follows Tinubu’s recent nationwide security emergency declaration.

Ajulo Backs State Police in response to what he described as a deteriorating national security environment that differs sharply from region to region.

He said the uniform federal structure has become too strained to cope with issues such as herder–farmer clashes in the North, cult-related violence in the South, kidnapping in the Middle Belt and oil theft in the Niger Delta.

He argued that state-level policing would provide cultural fluency, faster intelligence gathering and more accountable interventions.

He cited the South-West Security Network, known as Amotekun, as evidence that decentralised policing can succeed under democratic oversight.

Ajulo said Amotekun’s operations in 2025 created a “security firewall” that disrupted criminal infiltration across state borders, noting that Ondo and Osun recorded significant drops in kidnap incidents.

He stressed that the outfit had achieved these gains despite limited access to arms when compared with federal agencies.

Ajulo praised Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa for approving the recruitment of 500 new Amotekun officers and for inaugurating an advanced Control Command Centre that uses drones, surveillance tools and real-time mapping.

He said such investments showed that subnational institutions could innovate and modernise without compromising accountability.

He rejected suggestions that Tinubu’s proposal carried political undertones, calling it a pragmatic response to public distress.

Ajulo urged the National Assembly to act boldly and legislate state policing into existence, warning that hesitation would leave communities increasingly vulnerable.

He said the South-West had demonstrated that regional security outfits could serve as a shield for the public, adding that Nigeria risked further instability if sweeping reforms were not enacted immediately.

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Ajulo described state police as a national “necessity” rather than an optional experiment, urging stakeholders to rise to the moment with conviction.