State Police Bill Moves Closer as House Starts Clause-by-Clause Review.

The House of Representatives has commenced a clause-by-clause review of President Bola Tinubu’s executive bill seeking to establish state police, marking another significant step toward reforming Nigeria’s policing system.

Chairman of the House Committee on Constitution Review and Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, said lawmakers would use the version already passed by the Senate as their primary working document, with only minor adjustments expected.

Kalu explained that the Senate introduced a few amendments, including provisions on interpretation, transitional arrangements, and implementation, all of which will be carefully examined by the House committee before the bill is presented for final approval.

He recalled that the House had earlier passed its own state police constitutional amendment bill in June, but later withdrew it to consider President Tinubu’s executive proposal, which lawmakers believe offers a more comprehensive framework.

According to Kalu, President Tinubu has consistently supported the creation of state police since his time as Governor of Lagos State, describing the initiative as one of the administration’s key constitutional reforms aimed at tackling insecurity across the country.

The Deputy Speaker noted that both the executive and legislative arms of government are working together to ensure the bill is passed quickly, stressing that security remains a top national priority.

Supporters of state police argue that decentralising policing will improve intelligence gathering, community policing, and responses to local security threats such as terrorism, kidnapping, banditry, and communal clashes.

However, critics have expressed concerns that state governors could misuse state police for political purposes. To address these fears, the proposed constitutional amendments include safeguards on the establishment, funding, oversight, and operations of state police formations.

If approved by both chambers of the National Assembly, endorsed by at least two-thirds of the 36 state Houses of Assembly, and signed into law by President Tinubu, the legislation will become one of Nigeria’s most significant policing reforms since the return to democratic rule in 1999.

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