NEC Set To Consider State Police Reports in January Amid Widespread State Support

The National Economic Council (NEC), has scheduled to consider reports of the 36 state governments on the creation of state police, submitted on Thursday, during its next meeting in January, 2025.

According to the Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, who briefed the media, virtually all states are in agreement on the establishment of State Police.

NEC, on Thursday, also called on the state governments to key into the programmes of the Presidential Food Systems Coordinating Unit (PFSCU) in the bid to address the challenges militating against food security and their underlying causes.

NEC took the decision during its 147th meeting presided over by Vice-President Kashim Shettima at the State House, Abuja.

Briefing newsmen at the end of the NEC meeting, Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State explained that the majority of the governors were already in agreement with the creation of state police because of the security challenges in their states.

Sani said only the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was yet to make a submission on the matter.

He stated, “Today (Thursday), one of the discussions we had at the NEC meeting was the update on the creation of state police. As you are aware, there were submissions by states towards the establishment of state police.

“Today, about 36 states have already made their submissions for establishing state police in Nigeria. And I can say here that from what is available, virtually most of the states are in agreement with the establishment of state police in Nigeria.

“But, today, the council decided to step down the discussion until the next council meeting, because we need to come up with a report from the secretariat. And after the report, there will be deliberation at the next NEC meeting that is likely taking place in January.

“And not only that, there’s also a resolution in the last NEC meeting, which today the secretariat has also agreed on that there will be further stakeholder engagement after the panel and deliberation by the members of the NEC.

“So, all we are saying here is that 36 states have made their own submissions, and many states are in agreement for the establishment of state police, considering the fact that virtually every state has their peculiarity in terms of the problem of insecurity we are having in our own states.”

The governor added, “Knowing full well that we have a lot of ungoverned space in Nigeria, and also that we have a lot of deficit in terms of number of boots on ground, looking at the fact that a lot of security agencies, the police, the army and other relevant security agencies have no personnel to cover all the government space, that is the reason why most of us agreed that establishment of state police in Nigeria is the way forward towards addressing the problem of insecurity in our own country.”

On PFSCU, Technical Assistant to the President on Agriculture (Office of the Vice President) and Coordinator of PFSCU, Marion Moon, in a presentation to council, highlighted the strategy proposed by the unit to collaborate with sub-nationals in addressing food insecurity and unlocking Nigeria’s agricultural potential across the country.

Moon said PFSCU’s priorities, especially in agri-business, would enhance delivery mechanisms and expedite action on the attainment of targets set in President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the various aspirations by the respective state governments.

In its resolution, NEC “commended the presentation by the coordinator of the unit and urged state governments to key into the initiative.” It “requested the unit to prepare key achievements of its unit at the next meeting of the council”.

NEC also approved the request by the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) to seek a National Assembly amendment to its subsisting Act to provide an alternative funding source for the commission.

The council’s approval followed an earlier presentation by RMAFC seeking approval of its proposed bill to the National Assembly to amend its subsisting Act, and approve 0.05 per cent of non-oil federation revenue as an alternative funding source for the commission.

Earlier in his opening remarks, the vice president said the economic seeds sown by the federal government by way of reforms and interventions in 2024 were already beginning to bear fruit.

He urged members of the council to brace up for the new year, taking cognisance of the extent the programmes, projects, and policies executed this year had influenced the course of the country’s economy.

Shettima stated that the meeting was not just the final gathering of the council for the year but also a session to assess progress made so far in advancing the aspirations of the Nigerian people, whether the actions and decisions taken had justly prioritised the collective good over individual interests.

He said, “Difficult decisions have been taken to redirect the course of our national economy, and the results are beginning to show. The recent report of a 3.46 per cent GDP growth in the third quarter of 2024 is a reassuring sign of the harvests ahead. This growth reflects not just numbers, but the collective efforts and sacrifices made by all stakeholders in this room.

“Our agenda today includes a presentation on the current state of the economy by the World Bank. This is a timely discussion as we approach what promises to be our season of harvest. The economic seeds we have sown throughout this year, through reforms and interventions, are beginning to bear fruit.”

Shettima observed that the NEC meeting had been an avenue for sharing diverse viewpoints, including dissenting and contrarian voices, saying that attests to Tinubu’s democratic disposition.

According to the vice president, “This is a testament to the strength of the democratic traditions upon which this Council is built, traditions upheld and championed by President Tinubu. A democrat in every sense, he has stood with you, recognised your voices, and ensured that this council remains a centre of collaborative governance.

“As members of the executive branch, we understand that our role is but one part of a larger democratic framework. This system of governance is defined by checks and balances; it ensures that every decision reflects not just the will of a few, but the interests of the many.

“Yet, I assure you that no recommendation, suggestion, or proposal put forward in this chamber has been taken for granted.”

Shettima also described the World Bank’s HOPE Project, which focused on Human Capital Opportunities for Prosperity and Equity, as a significant opportunity for Nigeria.

He stated, “This initiative promises to strengthen our basic education and primary healthcare systems, ensuring that we expand our human capital indices in ways that create lasting impacts.

“Through targeted strategies, we can address long-standing inequalities and position our workforce to compete in a rapidly evolving global economy.”

Chairman of the NEC Ad-hoc Committee on Flood, Erosion, Drought and Desertification, and Governor of Kogi State, Usman Ododo, gave an update report on the committee’s activities, and noted the implementation of some of its recommendations.

Ododo spoke, especially, on the provision of financial support to states and disbursement of funds to line ministries and agencies of government to address floods and related disasters across the country.

He prayed the council to approve the winding down of the committee’s activities and transfer of its duties to the Taskforce on Flood, Erosion, Drought and Desertification.

The council noted the prayers of the committee and commended the chairman and members for discharging their tasks dutifully. It approved the committee’s recommendation for the disbursement of the balance of funds approved for government ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) for flood mitigation and related activities.

Equally speaking with reporters, Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State said NEC approved 0.05 per cent from non-oil federation revenue based on the proposed tax reform to fund RMAFC.

Soludo said, “Among the issues discussed at today’s NEC was also the presentation of a report in respect of an earlier presentation by the chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission to NEC on the 21st of November, and seeking essentially to revise or repeal the existing Act of Parliament establishing the commission and to replace it with a new one, and then also seeking for revision, I mean a review about alternative funding to the institution.

“So the report elaborately noted the very onerous responsibilities of RMAFC and as a very, very beautiful institution in the functioning of the federation, and noted the inadequate funding for this institution to be able to perform its tasks.

“And then also noted the draft repeal and replace legislation that was also pending. And after deliberating this, the council noted thus and approved as follows: first is that RMAFC should forward the draft bill to the National Assembly for consideration and passage into law.

“And second, the council also approved the recommendation for improved funding for RMAFC and approved that the commission be funded with 0.05 per cent non-oil federation revenue based on the proposed tax reforms and subjected to further scrutiny by the National Assembly.

“I know the commission had requested for 0.75 per cent, but in the wisdom of NEC, it was 0.05 per cent of course, subject to review by the National Assembly.”

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State said the Federal Ministry of Arts, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy made a presentation for the establishment of historic sites to be named Renewed Hope Creative Villages.

Sanwo-Olu said, “The whole idea is for the ministry to be able to work, first, with a lot of the sub-nationals to identify some of these sites and identify some of these very historic locations, and see how they are adapted into the creative villages, as a one stop shop.

“We’ve talked about the enormous opportunity that abound in the creative industry, especially with our rural historic sites and with our monuments. So, the whole idea around the presentation was for the ministry to put it at the front burner and for the sub-nationals to be able to work with them to identify various sites that can become what we call thriving.

“We know that sector has the potential of giving hundreds and thousands of jobs.”

Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun,  disclosed that the indebtedness of states to the federal government stood at N16.6 billion.

According to Edun, the Excess Crude Account, as at December 10, was $424 million, Stabilisation Account was N33.3 billion, and natural resources account was N23 billion

The minister added, “As regards the surpluses that states have with the federal government, that figure is currently N363.4 billion, while the states’ deficit position with the federal government stands at approximately N16.6 billion.”

Deji Elumoye 

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