Former Kano State governor urges FG to recruit 50,000 policemen yearly

Former Kano State Governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, has expressed concern over Nigeria’s low police-to-population ratio, highlighting the need for significant annual recruitment to address the shortfall.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, the top politician suggests recruiting about 50,000 policemen annually for a country with over 200 million people.

He said, “(Ex-President Muhammadu) Buhari promised to recruit 10,000 every year but my committee in the Senate was in charge of pension, and from the police pension record, on the average every year, 5,000 policemen leave the service either by death, retirement or whatever means.

“So, if you are recruiting 10,000 every year you are only recruiting 5,000. So, I made a submission, I have a document, I gave it to the government, that let us have a proper plan of 50,000 and 60,000 recruitment drive nonstop,” he said.

He also stressed the key role of traditional rulers in maintaining peace and security in the nation despite the call for state police.

“All we are saying is let there be community watch, community intelligence gathering. These insurgents are not living on the moon, they live with the people, all we need is for the government to get them coordinated.

“Don’t forget we cannot do this without the traditional institution, that is why that of Kano succeeded,” Shekarau said.