DM longgul ( opinion)

From the heart of Plateau’s security crisis, a powerful and unconventional voice has emerged, not from the chorus of populist outrage, but from a place of sober realism.

While the opposition clamors for a state police force as a silver bullet, Hon. Babayo Yusuf Gagdi offers a far more unsettling and thought-provoking perspective.

His stance is not one of political convenience but of a profound skepticism rooted in the hard truths of Nigerian governance.

To Hon. Gagdi, the conversation about state police is a dangerous distraction, a rush to empower the very same state-level actors who have consistently demonstrated an inability to manage power responsibly.

His argument is chillingly simple: if we cannot trust state governors to conduct a free and fair local government election, why on earth would we entrust them with an armed police force?

He points to the stark contrast between national elections, where opposition parties routinely win seats, and state-conducted local elections, which are almost universally a clean sweep for the ruling party.

This, he argues, is a powerful indicator of a fundamental flaw in the system. The question isn’t whether state police is a good idea in theory, but whether a Nigerian governor can be trusted with control over an AK-47.

Gagdi’s answer is a resounding “no.” Giving governors this power, he suggests, risks turning a security solution into a new security threat, where a governor’s allegiance is to their political party, not the people they govern.

Instead of fragmenting an already stretched security apparatus, Hon. Gagdi’s vision is a radical call for institutional reform and accountability within the existing Nigerian Police system.

He argues that the real issue is not a lack of federal control, but a failure of funding, oversight, and a lack of consequences for those in command. He points to the recent shift in the military, where the Chief of Defence Staff now holds commanders accountable for security lapses within their jurisdiction.

This, he contends, is the kind of strategic thinking that will bring change. The solution is to properly fund the police, equip them with modern tools, and then hold their commanders accountable for their performance.

Hon. Gagdi’s opinion forces us to confront a difficult question: are we truly ready for the decentralization of power, or are we simply clamoring for a quick fix that ignores the deeper, more complex issues of corruption and political irresponsibility at the state level? His argument is a direct challenge to the notion that more power is the solution. For Gagdi, the path forward is not through institutional fragmentation, but through the dedicated reform and strengthening of the very system designed to protect all Nigerians. He is not just opposing a policy; he is questioning the very foundation of our political culture, demanding that we address the root cause of our problems before we create new ones.

count | 55

Gagdi and the Path to Security: A Strategic Vision, Not Political Division.