Governor Rev. Fr. Dr. Hyacinth Iormem Alia of Benue State has once again positioned himself as a leading voice in the national debate on security, championing the establishment of state police and massive investment in education as a comprehensive two-pronged strategy to tackle Nigeria’s insecurity.
In a public lecture delivered at the University of Abuja, the governor argued that Nigeria’s centralized policing model is overstretched and disconnected from local realities. He maintained that every community understands its terrain, people, and threats better than a command centre hundreds of kilometres away.
“State police is not about division. It is about effectiveness. It is about giving governors the tools to protect the people who elected them,” Governor Alia said during the University of Abuja Quarterly Guest Lectures.
The governor, who combines the moral authority of a clergyman with the mandate of an elected leader, frames the security question in both policy and ethical terms. To him, peace is not merely the absence of conflict but the presence of justice, opportunity, and dignity.
While pushing for state police as an immediate response, Governor Alia insists that education remains the most sustainable long-term antidote to insecurity. Under his “Benue First” agenda, the state has prioritised human capital development through renovation of primary schools, payment of teacher arrears, scholarship schemes, and the establishment of vocational training centres aligned with Benue’s agricultural economy.
He believes that quality, accessible, and functional education fosters social cohesion, religious tolerance, and economic empowerment, thereby addressing root causes such as illiteracy, poverty, and unemployment.
The governor’s position aligns with growing calls for true federalism across the country. He has consistently advocated for decentralised policing and closer collaboration between local governments, traditional rulers, and security agencies. In Benue, his administration has already begun implementing community-based security initiatives alongside education reforms.
Delivering the lecture before a large audience that included the Vice Chancellor Professor Hakeem Fawehinmi and other senior academics, Governor Alia emphasised that “while education remains the most sustainable long-term response to insecurity, it must be complemented by institutional reforms that strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture.”
The article, written by Daniel GbabO Anyam, Principal Private Assistant to the Governor, was culled from Guardian Nigeria. Governor Alia’s message remains clear: investing in minds, not just weapons, offers Nigeria a hopeful path from fear to peace and from paralysis to progress.
