N’assembly ready to back police reforms, says Barau

Barau Jibrin, the deputy senate president, says the national assembly is ready to support reforms aimed at repositioning the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

In a statement posted on X on Monday, Jibrin spoke when he represented Senate President Godswill Akpabio at the Police Service Commission (PSC) board induction and strategic management session held in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom state.

He said Akpabio congratulated the newly inaugurated board members, describing their appointment as “a call to purpose, a mandate to reform, and a sacred trust to serve”.

“You have been summoned to a duty as weighty as it is historic, and I urge you: Leave a mark. Leave a legacy. Leave the system better than you met it,” Jibrin said.

He urged the board to embrace deep reflection beyond the ceremony of induction and to move from “titles into tasks” and “routine into reform”.

Jibrin said Nigeria stands at a threshold where the police must no longer be seen merely as an arm of coercion but as “an engine of trust, justice, and public service”.

He said the PSC members must see their mandate as an opportunity to bring light in a period of darkness.

“But let me remind you: light shines brightest in darkness. This is your moment to be that light,” he said.

He called for a shift in policy direction to make the police protectors rather than predators.

Jibrin urged the PSC board to study community policing models in countries like Japan and Finland, which emphasise empathy, conflict resolution, and neighbourhood engagement.

He said institutional reform would not happen without courageous disruption, adding that Singapore’s experience with stringent recruitment standards, transparent promotions, and strict accountability should serve as a model.

“In Nigeria, we must begin to institutionalise merit over mediocrity, discipline over favoritism, and integrity over impunity,” the deputy senate president said.

Jibrin also called for a reward system that recognises officers who embody the finest ideals of public service.

“The policeman who refuses a bribe may return home empty-handed today, but he must not return without hope—hope that in the end, integrity shall yield a reward far greater than the fleeting spoils of corruption,” he said.

“We must elevate the culture of commendation above the culture of condemnation.”

He said the police must embrace technology, use data to drive deployment, and use intelligence to drive action.

Jibrin assured the PSC that the national assembly would be available to review outdated laws, approve essential reforms, and provide oversight to achieve a people-oriented police system.

On February 10, the Justice Watch Initiative (JWI), a civil society group (CSO), commended Kayode Egbetokun, the inspector-general of police (IGP), for his “bold and transformative reforms” in the NPF.

A statement issued by Ilechukwu Obiorah, president of the JWI, described Egbetokun’s directives on case transfers, police authority misuse, and frivolous petitions as “landmark decisions” in reshaping policing across the country.