The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) together with seven other civil society organizations and development partners has demanded that President Muhammadu Buhari gives quick approval to the Police Reform Bill recently passed by the Senate.
They made this known during a joint press conference in Abuja.
They stated that passage and assent of the Bill will reflect this administration’s commitment to improving policing and public security in Nigeria.
“We urge the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to assent to the Police Bills with the urgency that the subject matter demands,” Okeke Anya, programme manager for CISLAC said, while reading from the joint statement.
He said the passage of the Bill by the Senate is a significant milestone in the quest to reform the Nigeria Police Force, adding that, the House of Representatives should equally pass the bill without delay.
He said as civil society and development partners they are concerned about Police abuses or the quality of policing in the country.
He said, “We are concerned about service and the operational conditions of police officers, amidst the huge security challenges confronting Nigeria.”
“The Police Force is persistently understaffed, underfunded, underequipped, neglected and poorly motivated to deal with threats of public safety,” he added.
He said such conditions are a recipe for the quality of policing we are experiencing today, noting that, the Reform Bill and Police Trust Fund Bill would address some of the challenges in the policing framework and practice in Nigeria.
The other civil society organizations at the joint press conference include: Cleen Foundation, Nigeria Policing Programme (NPP), Network on Police Reform in Nigeria (NOPRIN), Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption (RoLAC), AIG James Caulcrick (rtd), State of the Union (SOTU) and Zero Corruption Coalition (ZCC).
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