IPCR DG backs state police, calls for safeguards against abuse

Dr Joseph Ochogwu, Director-General of the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution, has expressed support for state policing, highlighting its potential to tackle farmer-herder conflicts and rural banditry through enhanced intelligence gathering, strengthened community engagement, and reduced response times to security threats.

However, he cautioned that such decentralized policing must be underpinned by professional standards, adequate funding, and effective oversight to avert political interference, human rights abuses, and the persecution of minority groups. Addressing a conference in Abuja, Ochogwu emphasized that state policing could bring law enforcement closer to communities, enabling security personnel to respond more effectively to threats due to their familiarity with local conditions.

He cautioned that while policing reforms alone would not guarantee lasting peace, communities grappling with weak governance, economic exclusion, and ineffective justice systems could see insecurity worsen if grievances were not properly managed. Factors such as unemployment, economic inequality, weak public services, and the proliferation of small arms could exacerbate insecurity.

Ochogwu identified disputes over land, identity, and political representation as factors that could lead to communal violence when public institutions were perceived as unfair or unresponsive.