The Nigerian Government says significant progress has been made towards establishing state police, with constitutional amendments expected soon following months of consultations among the Executive, the National Assembly and security authorities.
The Chief of Staff to the President, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, disclosed this on Thursday while briefing State House Correspondents after a consultative meeting convened by the Presidency on state police, held at the State House, Abuja.
Gbajabiamila said deliberations on the proposed state police framework began several months ago following a directive by President Bola Tinubu, noting that the process has gained considerable traction.
He explained that the establishment of state police requires careful consideration of constitutional and legal issues and cannot be implemented hastily.
“We started deliberations in the last three or four months on how to go about the establishment of state police as directed by Mr President.
“Establishing a state police is not something that you do with the wave of the hand or snap of the finger. There is a lot involved in terms of constitution and legalities, and thank God now we have gained a lot of traction; hopefully the amendment will come shortly, and the details of the amendment will come after that.” Gbajabiamila stated.
According to him, discussions have now advanced to the stage of considering the necessary constitutional amendments, while the enabling legislation would follow afterward.
“Right now, what we are looking at is the constitutional amendment itself, and then the enabling law would follow thereafter. That is what we have been deliberating on in the last couple of hours,” he said.
The Chief of Staff highlighted broad national support for the initiative, emphasising that the debate is no longer about whether state police should be established but about creating the appropriate legal and institutional framework for its operation.
He said President Tinubu, who has consistently advocated state police as part of efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture, would receive a comprehensive report on the outcome of the meeting.
“That is what we have been deliberating on in the last couple of hours, and hopefully we know that there is a national consensus on the establishment of state police. I don’t think there is any debate on that.
“It is something that the President has wanted and has been talking about for some time since last year, and he will be given a full report on this meeting and the outcome of this meeting,” the Chief of Staff added.
The meeting is part of a series of consultations convened by the Federal Government to develop a workable framework for the establishment of state police, an initiative aimed at strengthening internal security, improving local intelligence gathering and enhancing the capacity of sub-national governments to address emerging security challenges across the country.
President Tinubu has maintained in the last few months that state police is a necessary response to Nigeria’s evolving security challenges, advocating that a decentralised policing structure would strengthen grassroots security, enhance intelligence gathering and improve the protection of lives and property across the country.
The meeting was attended by the Deputy President of the Senate, Jibrin Barau; the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu; the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi; and the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, among other senior government and security officials.
