Reps drop own State Police bill, adopt Tinubu’s version in major constitutional reform

The House of Representatives has resolved to withdraw its earlier State Police Bill and adopt the Executive Bill transmitted by President Bola Tinubu, marking a significant shift in the National Assembly’s ongoing efforts to reform Nigeria’s security architecture through constitutional amendment.

Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, announced the decision on Tuesday while declaring open the 2026 National Assembly Open Week in Abuja. He explained that the Executive Bill is “more robust and more comprehensive” than the version previously passed by the House.

The decision effectively halts plans to harmonise the House and Senate versions of the earlier proposal, with lawmakers now set to begin fresh legislative consideration of the President’s bill.

Abbas said the Executive Bill incorporates additional constitutional safeguards developed by a presidential committee chaired by the President’s Chief of Staff and former Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila.

According to the Speaker, Nigeria’s growing security challenges have underscored the urgent need for a decentralised policing system.

“The deeper lesson is that a nation of this magnitude cannot be policed in perpetuity from a single command in Abuja,” Abbas said.

He noted that although the House had already passed its own State Police proposal through the Constitution Review Committee led by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, lawmakers would now recall that version to allow the Executive Bill to take precedence.

“I am able to share a development that speaks to the seriousness with which this administration regards the safety of Nigerians. His Excellency the President has now transmitted to the National Assembly an Executive version of the State Police Bill, one that is more robust and more comprehensive than the version this House earlier passed,” Abbas stated.

He assured Nigerians that the legislation would receive expedited consideration because of its importance to national security.

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Responding to concerns that the proposal could be rushed through the National Assembly, Abbas insisted that the bill would undergo a transparent legislative process, including public hearings and stakeholder engagement.

He assured Nigerians that the proposed framework contains robust constitutional safeguards designed to prevent abuse of state police by governors or other political actors.

According to him, states will only be allowed to establish their own police services after meeting strict constitutional requirements relating to accountability, operational capacity, funding and respect for fundamental human rights.

“There will be accountability, the protection of fundamental human rights, and firm boundaries between federal and state authority, so that no state police force may ever be reduced to the private instrument of a governor,” he said.

Abbas also invited Nigerians, civil society organisations and security experts to participate in the public hearing process by submitting memoranda before the bill is passed into law.

President Tinubu, in a letter dated June 15, 2026, formally transmitted the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (Alteration) (State Police) Bill, 2026 to both chambers of the National Assembly, urging lawmakers to accord it expedited consideration.

The President said the proposed legislation would create a constitutional framework for establishing State Police Services to complement the Nigeria Police Force in tackling the country’s worsening security challenges.

According to Tinubu, the bill builds on the constitutional amendment work already carried out by the House of Representatives while introducing additional safeguards recommended by a presidential committee established to review the framework for decentralised policing.

“The proposed legislation is a critical component of our administration’s strategy to reorganise Nigeria’s security architecture to better protect our citizens,” the President wrote.

The Executive Bill is expected to establish a dual policing structure, allowing both federal and state police institutions to operate within clearly defined constitutional responsibilities.

While State Police would primarily handle local law enforcement and community policing, the Federal Government would retain authority over national security matters such as terrorism, border protection, organised crime, intelligence coordination and other offences with nationwide implications.

For more than two decades, successive administrations, state governors, constitutional lawyers, security experts and civil society organisations have advocated the creation of State Police, arguing that Nigeria’s centrally controlled policing system has become overstretched.

Supporters believe decentralised policing would strengthen intelligence gathering, improve emergency response, deepen community policing and enable quicker responses to banditry, kidnapping, terrorism, communal clashes and other violent crimes.

The debate has intensified in recent years following the emergence of regional security outfits such as Amotekun in the South-West, Ebube Agu in parts of the South-East and several state-backed vigilante organisations established to complement federal security agencies.

However, critics have consistently warned that state police could be misused by governors to intimidate political opponents or interfere in elections if adequate constitutional safeguards are not entrenched.

To address those concerns, the Executive Bill reportedly includes stronger accountability measures, stricter oversight mechanisms and constitutional conditions that states must satisfy before establishing their own police services.

Importantly, the proposed amendment does not compel every state to establish a police force immediately. Instead, eligible states would be required to meet clearly defined constitutional standards before creating their own policing institutions.

The proposed constitutional amendment must secure the support of two-thirds of members of both the Senate and the House of Representatives before proceeding to the 36 State Houses of Assembly.

Under Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution, at least 24 state legislatures must approve the amendment before it can be transmitted to the President for assent.

With the House now aligning with the Executive proposal, attention is expected to shift to public hearings, stakeholder consultations and detailed legislative scrutiny of what could become the most far-reaching reform of Nigeria’s internal security system since the country’s return to democratic rule in 1999.

Reps drop own State Police bill, adopt Tinubu’s version in major constitutional reform