Former Kano State governor, Ibrahim Shakarau is warning the federal government against allowing the proposed state police to carry firearms and other dangerous weapons.
The presidency and all 36 state governors had unanimously agreed on state policing amid increasing insecurity in Nigeria.
But Senator Shekarau, the former minister of education, expressed fear that the proposed state police can aggravate political hooliganism in many states if not properly implemented.
Shekarau raised this concern when he appeared on the Kano-based Arewa Radio on Thursday night. He justified his fear with the spate of lingering political violence across many states in the country.
According to him, most of the atrocities were allegedly sponsored and promoted by politicians.
Even though he restated his support for the creation of the state police, the Sardaunan Kano warned that “the operatives must not be allowed to carry firearms and other dangerous weapons.”
He advised that the decentralized police should be tailored around the Kano State Hisbah Board model, which was used to address social vices during his tenure as the state governor.
On the federal government’s student loan policy, Shekarau said the conditions of the policy were too harsh for an average Nigerian student.
He highlighted that the students are expected to provide sureties with unrealistic deposits in their bank accounts.
According to him, that condition, among others, will make it difficult for an overriding majority of Nigerian students to access the loan.
Shekarau urged the federal government to review and remove some of the harsh conditions in the bill to give more Nigerian students access to the support they need.
