By Our Correspondent <\/p>\n
Stakeholders in the security sector, including the IGP, Police Service Commission, Police Trust Fund, Attorney General of the Federation, etc at a one-day public hearing organised by the Senate Committee on Police Affairs have expressed strong support for the proposed amendment of the Nigeria Police Trust Fund Act, 2019, and the reenactment of the Nigerian Police Trust Fund Act, 2026, aimed at boosting funding and equipping the police to tackle insecurity across the country.<\/p>\n
This was as the Inspector General of Police, Olatunji Disu raised objections to some of the clauses in the Bill insisting that his office is directly involved in the execution of the bill when it eventually become law.<\/p>\n
Presenting the position of the Nigerian Police Trust Fund (NPTF) at the hearing, the Executive Secretary of the Fund, Mohammed Sheidu, said the Trust Fund was established in 2019 to address longstanding funding deficits within the Nigeria Police Force, particularly in the areas of training, equipment, infrastructure, and personnel welfare.<\/p>\n
According to him, the Fund has over the past six years served as a strategic intervention platform supporting the transformation of the Nigeria Police Force.<\/p>\n
He, however, noted that the implementation of the current Act had exposed significant legislative, structural, and funding limitations, making it necessary to adopt a more progressive legal framework.<\/p>\n
Sheidu said Nigeria\u2019s security challenges have become increasingly complex since 2019, citing banditry, terrorism, kidnapping, cybercrime, organised criminal networks, and emerging technological threats as issues requiring a better-equipped and better-trained police force.<\/p>\n
According to him, the Federal Government under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has placed security at the centre of its Renewed Hope Agenda, and the proposed legislation would provide a stronger institutional framework for sustainable funding of police modernisation, training, technology, infrastructure, and personnel welfare.<\/p>\n
He added that a safer Nigeria would encourage investment, improve agricultural productivity, reduce inflationary pressures linked to insecurity, and enhance the quality of life of citizens.<\/p>\n
The Executive Secretary described the proposed 2026 Act as timely and critical, highlighting key provisions contained in the bill.<\/p>\n
Among them is the removal of the \u201csunset clause\u201d, which he said the NPTF strongly supports. According to him, security challenges do not end after six years, while police modernisation is a continuous process requiring long-term planning and sustained investment.<\/p>\n
He explained that removing the clause would provide certainty for strategic projects and strengthen partnerships with development agencies, international donors, and private-sector stakeholders.<\/p>\n
Sheidu also backed the proposal to increase the statutory allocation to the Fund from 0.5 per cent to one per cent, describing it as necessary to address current security realities.<\/p>\n
He noted that the proposal had already been approved by the National Police Council, chaired by President Tinubu and comprising all 36 state governors, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, the Chairman of the Police Service Commission, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Police Affairs, the Inspector-General of Police, and other key stakeholders.<\/p>\n
According to him, after extensive deliberations on the country’s security situation and funding requirements, the Council unanimously endorsed the increase in statutory allocation, reflecting a national consensus that sustainable investment in policing is essential to combating banditry, kidnapping, terrorism, cybercrime, communal conflicts, and other emerging security threats.<\/p>\n
The Attorney General of the Federation, represented by Imarha Oghenenyerowo Reuben said the office strongly supports the amendment to the Police Trust Fund Act for improved funding for the Police Force.<\/p>\n
Representative of the IGP, while supporting the amendment bill faulted the proposal that the Minister of Police Affairs should be the one to give needs assessment to the fund, saying the IGP is the right person to do that because \u201che who wears the shoes knows where it hurts most\u201d.<\/p>\n
Representative of the Ministry of Police Affairs who is the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Anuma Ogbonnaya also supporting bill expressed gratitude to the Senate for organising the public hearing.<\/p>\n
Senator Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) who also supported the amendment with his other committee members, sadly observed that \u201cthe police are not being taken care of despite our huge investment\u201d. He lamented that despite presidential order, you still see VIPs utilizing 20-30 police personnel attached to one person, some times not even a public officer.<\/p>\n
Senate President Godswill Akpabio represented by Osita Ngwu (Enugu West) said \u201cover the years, the Fund has recorded notable achievements in the execution of its mandate. In the area of capacity development, the Fund has sponsored and facilitated various training programmes, especially on: \u201ccounter-terrorism and tactical operations; Intelligence-led policing; explosive ordnance disposal (EOD); mechanical and technical training for police personnel; psychological support and attitudinal reorientation programmes; and Leadership and management development programmes for commandants and administrative personnel.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Fund has, similarly, made significant contributions in the area of infrastructure and operational support through the execution of projects across the federation, espeially: \u201cconstruction of new barracks and office complexes rehabilitation of police stations and operational facilities; provision of perimeter fencing and security infrastructure; development of Smart Police Stations and modern divisional headquarters; and construction of rank-and-file accommodation and other welfare facilities\u201d.<\/p>\n
The chairman, Senate Committee on Police Affairs Senator Abdulhamid Malam-Madori who presided over the public hearing assured all stakeholders that their contributions will be integrated into the bill.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Our Correspondent Stakeholders in the security sector, including the IGP, Police Service Commission, Police Trust Fund, Attorney General of the Federation, etc at a one-day public hearing organised by the Senate Committee on Police Affairs have expressed strong support for the proposed amendment of the Nigeria Police Trust Fund Act, 2019, and the reenactment […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":12095,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14247","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-law-crime"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14247","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14247"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14247\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14248,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14247\/revisions\/14248"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12095"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14247"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14247"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14247"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}