Akpabio Tells PSC to Reposition Police from Predator to Protector, Not Isolated Enforcer

•Calls for south-south unity to confront global challenges at Morocco forum

Sunday Aborisade and Linus Aleke in Abuja

Senate President Godswill Akpabio, yesterday, urged the Police Service Commission (PSC) to adopt policies that would reposition the police as protectors, not predators, and as community partners, not isolated enforcers.

He also promised the commission that the National Assembly would assist in repealing obsolete laws and reenact new ones to aid the commission’s reform efforts.

A statement by the Head of Press and Public Relations, Ikechukwu Ani, said the Senate President gave this charge in Akwa Ibom during the official opening of the induction programme for the board members of the Police Service Commission.

Represented by the Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin, the Senate President also charged the new members not to see their new position as a mere appointment but as a call to purpose, a mandate to reform, and a sacred trust to serve.

Noting that without a police force rooted in justice and trusted by the people, Akpabio said, “The foundations of our democracy will be tremble, the peace we cherish grows fragile, and the very fabric of our national life begins to fray.

“We recognise that no reform will endure without legislative partnership, and I promise that the National Assembly stands ready to review outdated laws, approve essential reforms, and provide robust oversight needed to ensure a professional and people-oriented police system.”

In a paper titled “Building a Police Force That Works for All,” the Senate President reminded the new members that they have been summoned to a duty as weighty as it is historic.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Dr George Akume, represented by the Permanent Secretary, General Services, Dr Maurice Mberi, told the new board that the federal government envisioned a support and governance structure where no individual would act in isolation.

He said the incumbent administration had clearly reaffirmed the importance of upholding collective responsibility in the administration of federal executive bodies.

The Chairman of the Commission, DIG Hashimu Argungu (Rtd), underscored the importance of the induction programme, stressing that the Commission was ready to get it right and build bridges of progress for the Nigeria Police Force.

Meanwhile, Akpabio, at the Third Edition of the South-South Parliamentary Dialogue Forum held in Rabat, Kingdom of Morocco, has advocated unity, solidarity, and action among nations of the Global South.

A statement from his Media Office explained that Akpabio spoke before an assembly of lawmakers, diplomats, and development leaders.

The theme of the forum was, “Inter-regional and Continental Dialogues in the Countries of the South as a Fundamental Lever to Address the Emerging Challenges of International Cooperation and Achieve Peace, Security, Stability, and Common Development.”

Akpabio urged southern nations to move beyond rhetoric and forge a new era of cooperation, industrial growth, and political resilience.

“We meet here today not merely to exchange words, but to forge weapons—of ideas, of solidarity, of bold policy, and brave cooperation.

“The storms we face — economic upheavals, climate crises, political instability — will not be conquered by isolated efforts, but by united resolve.”

Akpabio hailed Morocco as a symbol of bridging continents and traditions, praising the host nation for offering not just hospitality but “a fulcrum upon which we may turn the heavy wheels of history.”