The governor of Oyo state, Seyi Makinde, has accused the federal government of misleading Nigerians over the proposed creation of state police, insisting the process is taking unnecessarily long.
Speaking at the joint mega rally of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the APM in Ibadan, Makinde said south-west governors originally pushed for state police but eventually created the Amotekun security network in 2020 as an alternative.
“We wanted state police. It was because we couldn’t get the state police that we established Amotekun as a stop-gap,” he said.
“They should stop wasting Nigerians’ time.”
Makinde explained that the establishment of Amotekun showed states could independently create security structures without relying on the inspector-general of police or federal bureaucracy.
According to him, the south-west states worked through their various houses of assembly to legalise the regional outfit.
The governor noted that Lagos was the only south-west state that refused to establish Amotekun, attributing the decision to President Bola Tinubu’s disapproval.
“The only state that didn’t create Amotekun is Lagos state, and we know it is because their boss didn’t want Amotekun,” Makinde said.
He urged the federal government to empower state assemblies, arguing that state police could become operational quickly if there was genuine political will.
Makinde described insecurity as a key concern of his administration, adding that Amotekun was created early in his tenure after it became clear that full state police powers would not be approved soon.
His remarks come amid growing insecurity in Oyo state following the abduction of pupils, students, and teachers in Oriire LGA.
On May 15, gunmen attacked three schools in the Ahoro-Esin-Ele/Yawota area, abducting about 32 persons, including 18 primary school pupils, seven secondary school students, and seven teachers.
One of the kidnapped teachers was later reportedly killed by the abductors.