Twenty-five State Houses of Assembly have endorsed a proposed constitutional amendment to establish state police in Nigeria, advancing efforts to decentralise the country’s policing system amid persistent insecurity and concerns over human rights abuses and political interference.
The development was disclosed in reports published on which identified the supporting states and outlined the next steps in the constitutional amendment process. The endorsement exceeds the constitutional requirement of 24 states, representing two-thirds of Nigeria’s 36 states. However, formal verification of the state resolutions remains necessary before the amendment can proceed to presidential assent.
The 25 states are Ogun, Delta, Plateau, Kwara, Adamawa, Edo, Osun, Oyo, Rivers, Zamfara, Abia, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bayelsa, Benue, Cross River, Ekiti, Enugu, Gombe, Imo, Kaduna, Nasarawa, Taraba, Yobe and Kebbi.
The proposed amendment seeks to move policing from the exclusive legislative list to the concurrent legislative list, creating a framework under which federal and state authorities would have defined responsibilities for policing.
Supporters argue that decentralisation could improve intelligence gathering, shorten response times and enable law enforcement agencies to respond more effectively to local security threats, including kidnapping, banditry, communal violence and other criminal activities.
Under the proposed arrangement, state police services would operate alongside the federal police structure, allowing states to establish forces tailored to their security needs.
However, the reform would require further legal and administrative steps, including the completion of the constitutional process and the enactment of relevant legislation, before state police services could become operational.
Despite the growing legislative support, the proposed reform raises important questions about accountability, operational independence and the protection of fundamental rights.
Critics have warned that state police could be vulnerable to political interference, particularly where governors or other powerful officials attempt to use law enforcement agencies against political opponents, journalists, protesters or other critics.
Other concerns include arbitrary arrests, unlawful detention, excessive use of force, discriminatory enforcement, inadequate training and the possibility that differences in state funding could create unequal policing standards across the country.
These concerns underscore the need for effective oversight mechanisms that protect police officers from improper political directives while ensuring that officers who violate citizens’ rights face appropriate disciplinary or legal consequences.
The National Human Rights Commission has also emphasised the importance of strong human rights safeguards in any state policing framework, highlighting the relationship between effective security and the protection of citizens’ rights.
For the proposed system to command public confidence, its implementation must establish clear rules governing recruitment, training, financing, command structures, investigations and disciplinary procedures.
Independent complaints mechanisms, transparent investigations into alleged misconduct, judicial oversight and effective legislative supervision would be essential to preventing abuses.
The framework must also clearly define the respective responsibilities of federal and state police services to prevent jurisdictional disputes and ensure coordinated responses to crimes that cross state boundaries.
The challenge is to ensure that decentralising policing authority improves security without weakening the rule of law or exposing citizens to additional forms of abuse.
the Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Philip Agbese, said the National Assembly was receiving and collating formal resolutions from the state legislatures.
He explained that the Clerk to the National Assembly would authenticate the resolutions before the constitutional amendment could be transmitted to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for assent.
The endorsement by 25 states represents a significant legislative milestone, but it does not mean that state police have already been established or are ready to begin operations.
The coming stages will determine how the proposed system is legally constituted, funded and supervised, as well as the safeguards that will govern its relationship with state governments and the public.
Ultimately, the success of state police will depend not only on the ability of security agencies to respond to criminal threats but also on their commitment to professionalism, accountability and the protection of fundamental rights.
Twenty-five Nigerian states endorse the state police amendment as lawmakers prepare the next constitutional steps amid concerns over human rights, accountability and political interference.