Preparations are now in top gear for the public presentation of the book titled: The Imperative of State Police in Nigeria, written by the ex-Delta State Information Commissioner, Magnus Onyibe.
 
The book comes at a critical period in Nigeria’s history when killings, kidnappings, banditry, and other violent crimes have continued to escalate nationwide.

Sadly, what initially appeared concentrated in the North-East and parts of the North-Central region has now spread extensively into the South-West states of Ondo, Ekiti, and Oyo in dimensions never previously witnessed, with growing fears that the menace could further extend into Ogun and Lagos states if decisive and far-reaching security measures are not urgently implemented to halt the activities of rampaging criminal elements.
 
The urgency of the national security situation has further been underscored by the abduction of school children in Ogbomosho area of Oyo and Uba Askira in Borno state prompting recent remarks credited to the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, who disclosed that the Presidency and the National Assembly are set to fast-track constitutional templates for the establishment of state police structures in Nigeria has further intensified national discourse on the imperative of restructuring Nigeria’s policing architecture.  
 
The book, comprising 19 thought-provoking articles written and published by the author in the mass media from as far back as 2002 to date, chronicles the evolution of insecurity in Nigeria and presents compelling arguments for the establishment of state/ local policing systems as a strategic response to the nation’s worsening security challenges.

 Widely regarded as one of Nigeria’s most accomplished media columnists and respected thought leaders, Onyibe, through this publication, assembled, in one authoritative volume, the critical insights, historical perspectives, and policy recommendations required to guide lawmakers and policymakers in amending the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to accommodate state and local policing structures.
 
The foreword to the book is written by the distinguished professor of strategy and public policy, Prof. Anthony Kila, while the afterword is authored by former Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Alapini (rtd), a seasoned policing expert with extensive hands-on experience in law enforcement and internal security administration in Nigeria.