Nigeria’s security system came under sharp scrutiny as the Chairman of the House Committee on Police Affairs, Honourable Makki Abubakar Yalleman, raised an alarming alarm over the deplorable condition of the Nigeria Police Force, warning that the institution is dangerously underfunded and overstretched.
The lawmaker, speaking during a special plenary session on national security, cautioned that the country’s internal security architecture is “bending under immense pressure” and may fail without urgent financial intervention.
He revealed that police commands across several states have not received overhead funds beyond July, despite operating in November.
He described a recent call from the Commissioner of Police in Zamfara as a stark reminder of the crisis: “They don’t even have vehicles to respond to emergencies,” he said, stressing that even the Inspector-General of Police is unable to intervene due to lack of funds.
Moreover, he argued that the police, the backbone of Nigeria’s internal security, cannot effectively confront rising threats such as kidnapping, banditry, terrorism, and armed robbery without proper logistics, modern equipment, improved welfare, and a transparent recruitment process that brings competent officers into the force.
According to him, “Policing a country as vast as Nigeria with an underpaid and under-equipped workforce is almost an impossible task.”
He added that the system’s weaknesses are contributing to the growing insecurity across the North-East, North-West, North-Central, South-East, and South-South.
The chairman called on the Appropriations and Finance Committees to ensure immediate release of funds in the 2025 budget cycle, insisting that conversations about national security are “meaningless without prioritising the police.”
Furthermore, he urged the House to invite the Chief of Army Staff for a similar engagement, noting that security challenges are evolving and require coordinated, well-funded responses.
AFRIPOST reports that the debate marks one of the strongest public admissions yet of the financial paralysis crippling Nigeria’s frontline security institutions, underscoring the urgency of reform as insecurity persists.