Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, has backed the calls for decentralization of the Nigeria Police.
“State police is the way to go,”Osinbajo said at the opening ceremony for the two-day summit on national security organised by the Senate on the spate of killings by herdsmen and other crimes across the country.
The event is ongoing at the NAF Centre in Abuja.
Osinbajo also faulted claims that President Muhammadu Buhari is doing little to check the crimes by Fulani herdsmen due to his Fulani origin.
Stressing that his principal was not shielding herdsmen, the Vice President said, “It is untrue.”
Osinbajo said, “I was in Dong village in Adamawa where herdsmen had attacked the village and killed many but the vicious killing of Fulani also in Adamawa state is worthy of mention.
“Let me preface this by saying that every Nigerian is entitled to adequate security from government for their lives and livelihood. Government fails in that responsibility often but I must say never deliberately.
“Every killing demeans us as a people and undermines the authority of the state. This is why the suggestion sometimes that because the president is Fulani he has ignored the killings by herdsmen, that is so untrue and unfair.
“Herdsmen and farmers clashes resulting in deaths have been with us for at least two decades and I have worked with him for three years now and I do not know of one issue that has given him more concern or spent time as this particular issue.
“The approach of the government has been to deploy mobile police forces to these areas and also both the army and air force to Benue.
“The army has within the last few days scaled up the size of troops and equipment in Agatu, Katsina and Logo local government areas.
“The army has also deployed troops to Nasarawa state in order to monitor and block areas using as staging points by herdsmen to attack. There cannot be too much dialogue on issues that concern lives and property.
“It is obvious that the movement of cattle especially physically and on an endless journey on the move must now continue to take a different shape especially from the economic perspective we must have other ways.
“We believe that where cattle is sedentary is would improve the productivity of cattle. The federal government cannot dictate to states what to do with their land this is so because the land use act 1978 put lands under the control of governors.”
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