By Abdurrahman Balarabe Isah
Former Kano State Governor, Malam Ibrahim Shakarau is warning the federal government against allowing the state police being currently debated to carry firearms and other dangerous weapons.
Grassroots Parrot reports that presidency and all 36 state governors as well as other stakeholders had unanimously agreed on the creation of state police amid the incessant security challenges across the country.
But Senator Shekarau, the former minister of education, expressed fear that if not properly implemented, the proposed state police can aggravate political hooliganism in many states.
Shekarau raised this concern when he appeared on a Kano based Arewa Radio on Thursday night. He justified his fear with the spate of lingering political violence across many states in the country.
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According to him, most of the atrocities were allegedly sponsored and promoted by politicians.
Even though he reiterated his support for the creation of the state police, the Sardauna Kano warned that “the operatives must not be allowed to carry firearms and other dangerous weapons.”
He advised that the decentralized police should be tailored around the model of the Kano State Hisbah Board, which was used to address cases of social vices during his tenure in office as a governor of the state.
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On the federal government’s student loan policy, Shekarau said the conditions of the policy were too harsh for an average Nigerian student.
He highlighted that the students are expected to provide sureties with certain unrealistic amount of deposits in their bank account.
According to him, that condition among others will make it difficult for an overriding majority of Nigerian students to access the loan.
Shekarau urged the Federal Government to review and expunge some of the harsh conditions in the bill to enable more Nigerian students get access to the support.