Nigerian Senate Passes Bill Seeking To Establish State Police

The Senate has approved a constitutional amendment bill that seeks to allow the establishment of state police across Nigeria.

Lawmakers passed the bill on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, after reviewing and adopting all 26 clauses during deliberations at the committee of the whole.

If eventually enacted, the legislation will create a legal framework for states to operate their own police services while retaining the existing federal police structure.

The proposed reform is designed to improve security, strengthen intelligence gathering, and enable quicker responses to security challenges at the local level.

Presenting the bill for debate, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele explained that it was forwarded to the National Assembly by President Bola Tinubu as an executive proposal.

Bamidele described the legislation as one of the most important constitutional reforms since Nigeria returned to democratic governance.

“This important Bill is an Executive Bill transmitted by Mr. President and Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, seeking to alter the Constitution to provide for the establishment of State Police Services and other related matters,” he said.

“This Bill represents one of the most significant constitutional reforms in our nation’s democratic evolution. It addresses a long-standing national conversation on the structure, effectiveness, responsiveness and sustainability of policing in the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

According to him, the country’s current centralised policing system is facing increasing pressure due to rising security threats such as terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, communal violence, cybercrime, organised criminal activities, and other related offences.

“The increasing complexity of security threats, which include terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, communal conflicts, farmer-herder clashes, cybercrime, organised criminal networks and other transnational crimes, have placed enormous pressure on the existing policing framework,” Bamidele said.

He said the amendment would not replace the Nigeria Police Force but would allow individual states to establish their own police agencies through laws passed by their state assemblies.

Bamidele explained that any state interested in creating a police service would have to meet national standards set by the National Assembly.

He said under the proposal, the federal police would continue to handle matters relating to terrorism, organised crime, cybercrime, border security, arms trafficking, and policing within the Federal Capital Territory.

The senator noted that state police, on the other hand, would be responsible for enforcing state laws, maintaining public order, preventing crime, investigating offences, and protecting lives and property within their jurisdictions.

Bamidele also stated that the bill includes measures aimed at preventing abuse of state police by political leaders, adding that governors would not be allowed to use the police to harass opponents, groups, organisations, or individuals.

The senate leader emphasized that the legislation also seeks to prevent the use of state police for political, ethnic, religious, sectional, or personal interests.

During the debate, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe of Abia South said he had previously opposed state police but now supports the idea because of the worsening security situation across the country.

“Mr. President, I used to be one of those that is against state police. Mark my words; I used to be,” he said.

”But today, we know that we have very serious insecurity problem that can only be solved by thinking outside the box. And I think that this is part of it.”

However, Abaribe said his main concern lies with the future Police Act that would provide operational details for state police.

“But our issue on this is actually what goes into the police act. It’s not really the amendment of the constitution. Because you can amend the constitution but then in the act, matters of usage of the police is where most Nigerians are bothered about,” he said.

He also warned against giving the president excessive authority to take control of a state’s police service, particularly in situations where there may be political disagreements between the federal and state governments.

“We cannot have a situation where the president just looks at a state, maybe he’s not in good terms with the governor, and decides that he will take it over,” he said.

Abaribe further called for constitutional guarantees on funding for state police commissions, stressing that their allocations should be paid directly to avoid interference from state authorities.

“So that what we are seeing today, with regard to local government funds, we don’t have to see it with the police,” he said.

“I support this bill and I ask my colleagues to please also support it, provided we put the safeguards that we guarantee each Nigerian his rights.”

Senator Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto South also backed the proposal, saying he has consistently supported state policing as a way of strengthening Nigeria’s federal system.

“Mr. President, let me make it clear that I am in support of this bill and I am in support of the idea of state police,” he said.

“I have been consistent on this, not only when I was in the House of Reps as Speaker and as Governor of Sokoto State, even while here in the Senate, in the number of interviews I granted, I alluded to the fact that I support state police because I believe that that will also be a major leap into entrenchment of federalism in Nigeria.”

Tambuwal pointed to repeated attacks in Sokoto State as evidence that additional security measures are needed to address insecurity across the country.

He recalled incidents in which dozens of residents and security personnel lost their lives to bandit attacks, stressing that every practical solution should be explored.

“Only about three or four years ago, in my senatorial district, we lost over 80 people in Dange Shuni local government. Only three or four days ago, in the same local government, we lost some personnel of police that were there on rescue mission to send away bandits,” he said.

“So that is a clear picture of what is happening in most parts of the country. This is needed. Every effort, any effort to curb this menace of insecurity in Nigeria is needed.”

Like Abaribe, Tambuwal emphasised the need for strong safeguards to prevent abuse of state police by governors or future political office holders.

“We must have safeguards that will now ensure that there is no abuse on the part of those who are today in that position that we have left. And those who are coming, even those from amongst us, to this position of being governors of particular states,” he said.

He urged lawmakers to support efforts that would improve security and assist security agencies in protecting lives and property nationwide.

“I believe that the Senate of this country, we must ensure that we support Mr. President, support the security agencies in every effort that will establish security in every part of this country,” he said.

Before the constitutional amendment can become law, it must still receive approval from at least two-thirds of Nigeria’s state houses of assembly. Once that process is completed, the bill will be sent to President Tinubu for final assent.

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