Federalism, Insecurity and Community Policing In Nigeria

Abstract

There is a crisis in how federal arrangements could be used to solve the challenges of
insecurity in Nigeria. Community policing is being presented as a viable option for
resolving this challenge. But there are fears in certain quarters that these regional
complimentary security outfits could be converted to ethnic militias thereby posing a
greater threat than the ones experienced at present. The essence of centrally controlled
security apparatus and the helpless situation experienced by governors and regional
grouping of administrative heads of the second tier of governance which pushed them to
suggest alternative or complementary security outfits is the central focus of this paper.
The paper is preoccupied with theoretical issues on federalism, community policing as a
strategy for addressing challenges of insecurity, and the threats and challenges of
adopting regional security outfits in Nigeria. This article in five parts has an introduction,
a review of literature on theoretical issues on community policing via regional security
outfits, the consequences of degeneration into ethnic militias and the prospects of
complimenting the central control of security apparatus in Nigeria, and the
conclusion/recommendations. Secondary data were generated and analysed in themes.
The study concludes that the use of alternative security outfits as community policing
infrastructure could serve as a vehicle for managing Nigeria’s insecurity challenges like
insurgency, kidnapping, cattle rustling and armed banditry. The paper recommends that
the central government has to put legislation in place to accept regional security outfits
as community policing infrastructure and should work out a partnership that would ensure
vigilance among members of communities and reinforce conflict resolution mechanism.
This will address grievances that could be explored by criminal elements in the name of
agitation for regional autonomy or perpetration of criminal activities.