Human rights activist Omoyele Sowore, has called for a radical overhaul of Nigeria’s policing system, stating that no police officer in the country should earn less than N500,000 per month.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Morning Brief, Sowore argued that improving police welfare was central to tackling insecurity, and that the current condition of the force was directly linked to Nigeria’s widespread security failures.
“Our position is that no policeman should be paid less than N500,000 per month,” he said. “Before you ask if that is fiscally sustainable, you must consider the cost of not properly equipping or paying a policeman. Compare that against what we are currently spending trying to contain Boko Haram in just one state.”
He said the current underfunding and neglect of the police had weakened the institution’s capacity to provide internal security, which in turn had led to increased reliance on the military and the resulting militarisation of civil issues.
Sowore added that significant investment in internal policing would have long-term economic and security benefits for Nigeria, citing potential reductions in terror attacks, kidnappings and general crime.
“If you invest in policing, in a year you will get a reduction in terrorism by almost 70%, a reduction in kidnapping by almost 80%, and almost zero crime rate across the country,” he said.
He criticised the government’s continued investment in military hardware as an inefficient and costly approach to insecurity, saying: “You know how much an Apache helicopter costs? That’s the same money that can be used to improve police welfare and capability. But instead, we spend to bomb parts of our country.”
Sowore argued that police officers, if properly paid and equipped, would be able to function like their counterparts in other parts of the world. He added that the fight for better police pay was not about retirees but about fixing the broader internal security infrastructure of the country.
“You cannot leave police in this condition and expect them to protect you,” he said. “That is how to judge the investment that needs to be made—not to say, ‘Oh, how are we going to sustain it?’ The real question is, how are we sustaining insecurity?”
He urged Nigerian authorities to rethink their security spending priorities and treat internal policing as a strategic national investment rather than a budgetary burden.
“Look at the value that policing and general security brings to communities,” he said. “That is why Nigeria’s security system is broken today because we are failing to make the right investment at the right level.”
Sowore’s proposal for a N500,000 minimum monthly salary for police officers has sparked debate online, with some supporting the idea as a way to reduce bribery and boost morale, while others have questioned its feasibility given Nigeria’s current fiscal constraints.
He, however, insisted that the cost of inaction is far greater than the proposed investment.
“You sustain insecurity when you fail to sustain the people who are meant to protect you,” he concluded. (Guardian)
