Parties divided over proposed state police as debate intensifies

…Shelve reform till after 2027 election, Obi tells Tinubu

Political parties and other Nigerians have expressed sharply contrasting views over the National Assembly’s passage of the Constitution Alteration Bill seeking to establish state police, with supporters hailing it as a landmark solution to insecurity while critics warn it could become a dangerous political tool.

Both the Senate and the House of Representatives have passed the bill titled “A Bill for an Act to Alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to Provide for the Establishment of State Police and Related Matters (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026 (SB.1055).”

The proposed legislation now awaits concurrence by state Houses of Assembly and presidential assent.

The bill introduces a dual policing structure comprising a Federal Police Service and State Police Services.

While the Federal Police Service will retain responsibility for national security, federal offences, interstate crimes, organised criminal activities and security within the Federal Capital Territory, state police services will oversee local law enforcement, public order and protection of lives and property within their respective states.

It also establishes State Police Commissions and outlines procedures for the appointment, discipline, oversight and removal of police leadership at both federal and state levels.

The proposal further empowers the federal government to intervene in state police operations under specific circumstances, including threats to national security or a breakdown of public order.

The executive bill, sponsored by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central), on behalf of President Bola Tinubu, contains provisions governing the appointment, command and tenure of police leadership.

Under Clause 17, the Federal Police Service will remain under an Inspector-General of Police, while each state police service will be headed by a Commissioner of Police appointed by the governor and confirmed by the State House of Assembly.

Section 17(6) authorises governors to issue lawful written directives of a general nature to state commissioners of police on matters relating to public safety and public order.

However, Section 17(7) bars state police commissioners from arresting, detaining, investigating, prosecuting or deploying force against any individual, political party or group solely for criticising the government except in accordance with the law.

Parties, Nigerians sharply divided

The proposed legislation has triggered mixed reactions across the political spectrum, exposing deep divisions over whether state police would strengthen security or merely decentralise existing problems.

ADC warns against rushed implementation

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) faulted the Tinubu administration’s handling of the reform, describing it as a politically driven response to Nigeria’s security crisis rather than a carefully planned institutional overhaul.

Its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi in a statement on Friday said although the party supports state police as part of broader constitutional reforms, it rejected attempts to portray it as an immediate solution to insecurity.

“What we are witnessing is a hurried response to a worsening security crisis, not the careful institutional planning required to build a functional, accountable and effective policing system. State police is too important to be reduced to a quick legislative fix,” he said.

The ADC argued that without reforms in intelligence gathering, judicial autonomy, police funding, recruitment, training and oversight, state police would merely replicate existing weaknesses.

The ADC also questioned the timing of the proposed reform, accusing the government of rushing a constitutional amendment to create the impression that it was tackling insecurity.

The party maintained that without strengthening existing institutions and reforming the Nigeria Police Force, creating state police would merely duplicate existing weaknesses rather than deliver lasting security.

“After all, if President Tinubu were genuinely committed to state police, why did it take his administration almost until the end of its tenure to begin rushing through a constitutional amendment?

“Passing a law is only the beginning, and probably the easiest part, of a complex process. Recruitment, vetting, training, equipment, funding, command structures, operational guidelines, and independent oversight cannot be created overnight, especially as the country approaches another election cycle,” the ADC queried.

PRP rejects proposal, questions Tinubu’s credibility

Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, National Chairman of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), also said the current administration lacks the credibility to undertake such a fundamental restructuring of Nigeria’s policing system.

He argued that the government had failed to effectively manage existing security institutions and should first restore public confidence before embarking on constitutional reforms.

“The APC administration has failed to manage our security structure and institutions. Its plan to engineer the emergence of state police is suspicious and should be rejected,” he said.

The PRP maintained that discussions on state police should be deferred until after the next general election.