The Police Service Commission (PSC) has raised alarm over gross underfunding, warning that it is incapable of effectively carrying out its constitutional mandate of police recruitment, promotion and discipline under the current financial structure.
The Commission also cautioned that divergent interests were attempting to hijack its statutory responsibilities, thereby undermining its efficiency and effectiveness.
The Chairman of the PSC, retired Deputy Inspector-General of Police Hashimu Argungu, voiced his frustration yesterday during a visit by a Presidential delegation led by the Special Adviser to the President on Policy and Coordination and Head of the Central Results Delivery Coordination Unit, Hadiza Bala Usman. The delegation was at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja for an engagement meeting with its leadership.
According to a statement by the Commission’s spokesperson, Ikechukwu Ani, the visit was aimed at identifying areas where the PSC required support for more effective service delivery.
Argungu, who led the Commission’s management team, told the delegation that the PSC is grappling with the twin challenges of inadequate funding and persistent attempts to usurp its constitutional role.
He said the Commission remained committed to leveraging its established policy of accountability and transparency to help build a Police Force adequately prepared for 21st-century policing.
The Chairman highlighted several areas of concern, including poor staff returns from the Nigeria Police Force, institutional conflicts, limited nationwide presence, inadequate funding, and a public trust deficit. These, he said, were hampering the Commission’s ability to function optimally.
Argungu stressed:
“One of the key problems the Police Service Commission is facing is unnecessary interference with its constitutional and statutory mandate. The Central Results Delivery Coordination Unit should assist the Commission in fending off these interlopers and ensure we are allowed to do our work.”
He lamented that the envelope budgeting system, which imposes a ceiling on budget allocations, has severely restricted funding for the Commission’s core functions.
Recommending a way forward, Argungu said:
“An independent budgeting system for the Commission that allows it to submit its budget directly to the Presidency is necessary. The PSC Act of 2001, Section 15(1), mandates the Commission to submit its estimate of expenditure and income for the succeeding year no later than 30th September of each year to the President.”
Responding, the leader of the delegation, Hadiza Bala Usman, assured the Commission that the Presidency would ensure it is adequately empowered to discharge its constitutional mandate.
She pledged:
“We will review your mandate and ensure that you are allowed to carry out your work. We will address the bottlenecks, and we will ensure that the PSC stands alone and is not treated as an attachment to any Ministry.”
Bala Usman added that the purpose of the visit was to strengthen collaboration between the PSC and the Ministry of Police Affairs, as well as to clarify the role of the PSC in achieving the Presidential Priority Area on strengthening national security for peace and prosperity.
Linus Aleke
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