Security and Development in Lagos State

Security is one of those things which motivation scholars describe as “hygiene” factors – a state of security is not appreciated until insecurity is prevalent, then we seek earnestly for security, and once a state of security emerges, we are relieved and appreciate it, until the previous insecurity fades away, and then we forget. Ask Lagosians the achievements of the Fashola administration in Lagos, and they are likely to talk about tangible or visible phenomena, particularly infrastructure and social services: road construction, new school buildings, hospital services, environmental greening, clearing of Oshodi, improved refuse disposal system, BRT buses, etc. Very few people may immediately mention security of lives and property. I happen to think that is in fact the most significant achievement the Lagos government has recorded since 2007. Using my own personal experience, I recall facing four different armed robbery attacks between 2000 and 2007 – a brand new car was snatched in 2000, never to be seen again; armed robbers lurking at my gate in 2001 (apparently waiting to snatch my car) snatched my wife and a neighbour’s bags when I didn’t turn up in time; in 2003, while visiting a junior colleague who had just given birth, my entourage and I were attacked by robbers; and in 2007, my home was attacked during the night by armed marauders. Since 2007 (thanks be to God!), I have not had a similar encounter. My story may not be a scientific sample, but practically everyone I knew had tales of car snatching, home attacks, robbery during traffic snarls and worse up till 2007. Somewhat “miraculously”, much of these have ceased, even though episodes of crime have of course not been eradicated from Lagos. All over the country, crime and insecurity prevail – the Eastern states rife with armed robbery and kidnapping; while militants may have declared a (temporary) ceasefire in the Niger Delta, kidnappers and armed robbers (who may in substance be the same people as the erstwhile “militants”) continue unchecked; Edo and Delta States are overwhelmed with criminals and kidnappers. During a December 2011 visit to Warri, I realised the alarming extent of crime in the oil city and its negative impact on the local economy and night life). Many parts of the North have, as we know, been overtaken by terrorism and violence, subverting the economic potential of many Northern cities and states. In the later months of 2011, the South-West states (minus Lagos), especially Ogun, Oyo and Ondo, were taken over by armed robbers, leading in some cases to the closing down of banks and businesses, and consequent decline in commercial activity. Why has Lagos State been, by and large, exempt from the virtual breakdown of law and order and prevalence of crime and insecurity across the nation? Clearly, the state of security in Lagos is not happenstance or mere co-incidence but the consequence of a deliberate strategy encompassed in the activities of the Lagos State Security Trust Fund (LSSTF), which was set up by Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola under a law enacted by the State House of Assembly in 2007. The LSSTF is a public-private initiative created to address the issue of inadequate funding of the police and other law enforcement/security agencies by the federal government which is constitutionally charged with that responsibility. It is one of the acute incongruities of Nigeria’s current constitutional order that the federal government insists on not permitting the establishment of state police while abandoning not just the police, but most other federal agencies domiciled in the states (SSS, Customs, Prisons, Immigration, and even some federal secretariats) to the state governments for funding and operational maintenance. In effect, the state government neither eat their cake, nor have it. The LSSTF was created to bridge the huge funding gap which had condemned the police to ancient methods, untrained and ill-motivated personnel, ineffectiveness and almost total irrelevance in the fight against crime in Nigeria. Since its inception, LSSTF has mobilised over N8.4 billion as at October 2011 to support the activities of the police and other security agencies through provision of armoured personnel carriers, patrol vehicles, motorbikes, radio and communication equipment, kitting, training, incentives and personal allowances, fuelling and maintenance of vehicles, and other varied support. From available records, LSSTF mobilised N4.4billion in the seventeen months to December 2008, with Lagos State government (LASG) providing 56% while private sector entities provided the balance. In 2009, N1.12billion was raised, with LASG responsible for 74%. In 2010, N1.27billion was realised, with LASG contributing 67%. And in the ten months to October 2011, the fund generated N1.56billion, with LASG donating 82%. The enhanced equipment, mobility, competence and motivation of security agencies in Lagos State is the basis upon which the current relative peace and security in the state is founded. That peace and security is what substantially accounts for the economic and commercial progress made in the state. Businesses – local and foreign – can invest; a night economy has (at least partially) developed; firms can grow and generate new employment; the state’s tax base has expanded as a consequence; and more funds can be generated for investment in infrastructure and social services. I am told the Lagos State model is now being transferred to several other states. The sooner, the better!