Reps urge Nigerian govt to consider auction of police barracks

The House of Representatives on Thursday urged the Federal Government to address the deplorable living conditions of men and officers of the Nigeria Police Force.

This followed the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance presented by the lawmaker from Edo State, Murphy Omoruyi, during the plenary in Abuja.

The House also urged the federal government to consider the idea of auctioning the barracks.

Omoruyi, who led the debate on the motion, recalled that former President Muhammadu Buhari on September 16, 2020, signed the Police Reform Bill 2020 after it was passed by the National Assembly.

The lawmaker lamented that the problem of adequate accommodation for police officers has defied measures by successive governments in the country.

He noted that Nigerians have lost confidence and respect in the police officers due to their poor condition of service.

Omoruyi said: “Between 2019 – 2022 more than N5 billion was spent by the Federal Government on the renovation of barracks.

“However, all efforts made to rehabilitate the barracks failed to achieve the desired results.”

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“Having officers of the Nigeria Police living amongst the general population, rather than in their secluded barracks will significantly satisfy the calls for community policing and enhance public safety.”

In his remark, the Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, directed the Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Police Affairs to liaise with the Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE) to immediately assess the value of all police barracks across the country and announce a public offering for same.

The House will constitute an ad-hoc committee to produce a comprehensive addendum to the Police Reform Bill with input from all relevant stakeholders and submit its report within four weeks.

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