Kayode Egbetokun, the Inspector General of Police, says each of the 1,537 divisional police headquarters requires four patrol vehicles.
On Tuesday, the IG told the House of Representatives that the Nigeria Police Force struggles with finance and manpower.
Egbetokun claimed, “The police also operate in a very difficult environment. Present police manpower is drastically inadequate. Even criminals know that. The UN ratio of 1 to 400 is unattainable in Nigeria today. Nigeria has a one-to-1,000 ratio, so we need double the labor.
There are 1,537 police divisional headquarters in 774 LGAs. But divisions have trouble procuring functioning vehicles. The divisions need at least four operable patrol cars. We have divisions without patrol vehicles today.”
For each of 1,537 police divisional headquarters to procure four patrol vehicles, 6,148 vehicles are needed.
Toyota Hilux V6s cost at least N40m new.
In phone interviews with our correspondent, some auto dealers who did not want their names published quoted the amount.
Police will need N245,920,000,000 to buy 6,148 vehicles at N40m.
The IG emphasized police financing in his National Assembly speech.
“An agency with limited resources cannot perform. In the last five months, we’ve arrested several. Many illegal weapons have been found. The prosecution of several of these suspects is underway. However, arrests will not fix our security issue. 100 criminals were arrested today, and 200 will be released tomorrow, he said.
Retired Deputy Inspector General of Police Adedayo Adeoye advised President Bola Tinubu to declare a state of emergency for at least six months to end insecurity in an interview with The PUNCH on Tuesday.
To improve NPF manpower, the retired police chief advised the Federal Government to fund the NPF and remove police officers from VIP escort responsibilities.
Adeoye claimed, “The IGP was right about funding and manpower, and I commend him for withdrawing police officers from VIP duties. This would boost NPF manpower.
My knowledge of other security services is limited, although the police don’t receive half of the NPF’s budget. Police stations can’t afford fuel for patrol vehicles and other expenses because of this. The police need money. Security organizations require more advanced weapons and intelligence-gathering equipment to fight insecurity.”
