Morganable news/Security&Justice
The conclusion of the exercise approximately seven months after its commencement marks a major expansion of the manpower available to the Nigeria Police Force
kaNo —
The Police Service Comission has handed over 50,000 newly recruited police constables to the Nigeria Police Force for training, as the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, disclosed that Nigeria had studied policing systems in India, the United States and Pakistan in developing a framework for the proposed state police.
The two developments came amid renewed efforts by the Federal Government and security agencies to strengthen police manpower and reform the country’s policing architecture in response to persistent insecurity.
The PSC formally handed over the successful recruits to the Nigeria Police Force on Thursday for training at designated police colleges and other approved institutions across the country.
A statement issued by the commission’s spokesperson, Torty Kalu, said the handover was presided over by a retired Justice Paul Galumje, a Commissioner of the PSC.
According to the statement, the recruitment exercise was conducted in accordance with the directives of President Bola Tinubu and relevant statutory provisions governing the recruitment of personnel into the Nigeria Police Force.
He also handed over the detailed list of the successful candidates, contained in a flash drive, to representatives of the Nigeria Police Force.
Receiving the recruits on behalf of the Inspector-General of Police, the Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Isyaku Mohammed, who oversees the Force Training and Development Department, commended the commission for what he described as a transparent recruitment process.
Police Express Readiness To Train New Recruits
Mohammed said the police were prepared to commence the training of the new recruits simultaneously across the country once the necessary funds were released.
“The training will commence nationwide as soon as funds are released,” he said.
The Secretary to the PSC, Onyemuche Nnamani, attributed the successful completion of the exercise to collaboration among the various stakeholders involved in the process.
Nnamani expressed satisfaction with the outcome, saying the exercise demonstrated effective teamwork among the institutions responsible for the recruitment.
Recruitment Follows Nationwide Security Emergency Declaration
The recruitment followed President Tinubu’s declaration of a nationwide security emergency on November 26, 2025, when he directed the recruitment of 50,000 additional police personnel as part of measures to address worsening insecurity across the country.
The commission later extended the application period by two weeks, moving the closing date to February 8, 2026, to give more prospective applicants the opportunity to complete the process.
The conclusion of the exercise approximately seven months after its commencement, marks a major expansion of the manpower available to the Nigeria Police Force.
The new constables are, however, expected to undergo training before being deployed for policing duties, with the timing of the exercise now dependent on the release of funds required to conduct the nationwide training programme.
The development comes as the police leadership continues to prepare for a possible restructuring of the country’s policing system through the introduction of state police.
Speaking at a workshop on state police organised by the Nigeria Institute of Police Studies in Abuja on Thursday, IGP Disu said the committee responsible for developing the police framework had conducted comparative studies of countries with state policing systems.
We Studied India, US, Pakistan Models- IG
According to the police chief, the committee examined the experiences of India, the United States and Pakistan to understand how state policing operates and determine lessons that could be adapted to Nigeria.
“A lot of comparative analysis has been done. We have taken time to study nations where they have state police India, America and even Pakistan and how things work there,” Disu said in a video of the event posted on X.
He explained that the workshop was designed to educate senior police officers about the proposed state police structure and address concerns and fears surrounding its implementation.
Disu said police officers who would eventually operate within the proposed system needed to understand its objectives and implications.
“It is our duty to educate them and let them know what state police is all about,” he said.
Nigeria Police Has Responsibility In Ensuring Effective Policing Structure-IGP
The IGP said the Federal Government had made a decision to pursue the establishment of state police, adding that the Nigeria Police Force had a responsibility to assist in ensuring that the initiative produced an effective policing structure.
“The Federal Government of Nigeria has made up its mind to have state police, and it is our duty to assist them to achieve it,” he said.
Disu recalled that there had initially been disagreements within the police over whether the Force should develop its own framework, particularly because some officials believed the decision to establish state police had already been taken.
He said the police eventually agreed to constitute a committee to develop a framework that would reflect the operational realities of the country.
The IGP disclosed that the Nigeria Governors’ Forum had already established its own committee and completed its assignment before the police committee commenced its work.
According to him, the police committee later caught up with the governors’ committee, with the framework developed by the police subsequently becoming part of the discussions surrounding the proposed reform.
He said the police committee completed the initial framework within 17 days.
“I think it took us 17 days only to come up with a framework that has become the genesis of what everybody is working on today, and we still need to put some finishing touches to it,” Disu said.
The IGP further disclosed that retired inspectors-general of police had reviewed the document and contributed recommendations towards strengthening the proposed framework.
He urged police officers participating in the workshop to take the discussions seriously and make meaningful contributions to the process.
The Force said any new policing structure must be guided by professionalism, accountability and operational effectiveness, stressing that the ultimate objective should be to improve national security and strengthen the capacity of law enforcement agencies.
The simultaneous expansion of police manpower through the recruitment of 50,000 constables and ongoing discussions on state police therefore represents two significant strands of the Federal Government’s broader response to insecurity.
While the new recruits are expected to increase the numerical strength of the Nigeria Police Force after training, the proposed state police system could introduce a more decentralised approach to policing if ultimately adopted.
