Foundation Urges FG To Strengthen Police, Ease Military’s Security Burden

The Defence Families Empowerment Foundation (DFEF) has urged the federal government to strengthen the Nigeria Police Force through increased funding, specialised training, modern equipment and improved welfare to enable it take greater responsibility for internal security and ease the burden on the military.

The foundation said this had become necessary amid growing security challenges and the increasing pressure of prolonged internal security operations on the Nigerian Armed Forces.

In a statement issued in Kaduna yesterday, its Founding Director, Mohammed Thompson, said the police must be adequately funded, equipped and trained before greater security responsibilities could be transferred to the force.

The call followed recent remarks by the Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (Rtd.), on the pressure prolonged internal security operations had placed on the military and the need for the police to gradually assume greater responsibility for domestic security.

While describing the minister’s position as an important conversation about Nigeria’s security architecture, DFEF cautioned that transferring additional responsibilities to the police without addressing its operational and institutional weaknesses could create security gaps that criminal elements might exploit.

The Foundation noted that the police, as the country’s primary civilian law enforcement institution, had constitutional responsibilities for maintaining law and order, preventing and investigating crimes, and protecting lives and property.

However, it said rising cases of kidnapping, armed banditry, organised criminal activities, communal violence and terrorism-related threats required a better-trained, properly equipped and intelligence-driven police force.

According to the Foundation, the military’s prolonged involvement in internal security operations had placed considerable pressure on its personnel, equipment, logistics and other operational resources, with soldiers often staying away from their families for extended periods.

It said strengthening the police would allow the Armed Forces to concentrate on their primary defence responsibilities, while the police handle routine law enforcement and take greater responsibility for domestic security operations.

DFEF stressed that strengthening the police should not be viewed as competition between the two institutions, but as an opportunity to establish a coordinated security system in which both agencies complement each other.

It urged the Federal Government to treat police reform and capacity development as a national security priority rather than merely an administrative response to the increasing demands on the military.