From Musa Muhammad Kutama, Calabar
A call has been made to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Senate President Godswill Akpabio to consider renaming the Nigeria Police Force to the Nigeria Police Service.
Alhaji Sha’aban Abdullahi made the suggestion in an interview with journalists in Calabar, Cross River State.
He argued that the term “Force” should be replaced with “Service,” stressing that the police, like other paramilitary agencies such as the Customs Service and Immigration Service, are meant to serve rather than operate as a force.
“Rename the police from Force to Service. They are not a force; they are supposed to be a service, just like Customs and Immigration. They are under internal affairs and they are services,” he said.
The political analyst further stated that the current nomenclature limits international recognition of the Nigeria Police compared to other security agencies such as the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Correctional Service, which he said are more globally structured and standardized.
“That is why they don’t have world recognition like the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Correctional Service.
“They all have one recognized structure globally,” he added.
He further argued that paramilitary institutions in many countries, including Ghana and Cameroon, operate under a “service” structure rather than a “force” designation.
“All of them are paramilitary. In every country like Cameroon and Ghana, they use ‘service’. There is nowhere you see ‘force’ except Nigeria. It should be Nigeria Police Service,” he declared.