Nigerian Senate: Confident In State Police Bill Approval From Houses Of Assembly

• The Nigerian Senate is confident that the State Police Services Bill will secure the required approval from state Houses of Assembly.
• The National Assembly transmitted the bill to all 36 state Houses of Assembly on September 16, with a 30-day deadline expiring on October 15.
• As of a recent update, only Edo, Oyo, Osun, and Rivers states had approved the constitutional amendment.
• A minimum of 24 state Houses of Assembly, representing two-thirds of the total, must consent for the bill to pass.
• The 10th Senate is committed to completing the state police constitutional alteration process during its current tenure.

The Nigerian Senate has expressed strong confidence in securing the necessary approvals from state Houses of Assembly for the proposed State Police Services Bill, a critical step in the ongoing constitutional alteration process.

The Nigerian Senate has expressed strong confidence in securing the necessary approvals from state Houses of Assembly for the proposed State Police Services Bill, a critical step in the ongoing constitutional alteration process. According to Yemi Adaramodu, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, there is no significant opposition to the establishment of state police, and the Senate anticipates the required backing from state legislatures.

This proposed legislation, central to the Nigeria state police constitutional amendment efforts, was transmitted by the National Assembly to all 36 state Houses of Assembly on September 16. These legislative bodies were given a 30-day period to consider and decide on the bill, with the deadline set to expire on October 15. As of the most recent update, only four states—Edo, Oyo, Osun, and Rivers—had formally approved the measure.

The State Police Services Bill Nigeria represents a significant constitutional alteration, requiring the consent of at least two-thirds of the state Houses of Assembly. This translates to a minimum of 24 out of the 36 state legislatures needing to approve the bill for it to advance. The full formal title of the proposed law is the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026, which aims to provide for the establishment of State Police Services and related matters.

Kamoru Ogunlana, the Clerk to the National Assembly, clarified that this particular State Police Bill is currently the sole constitutional amendment proposal that has been transmitted to the state Houses of Assembly. Other Constitution Alteration Bills are slated for transmission to the states only after they have successfully passed in an identical form through both chambers of the National Assembly.

This legislative push for the National Assembly state police initiative comes amid widespread demands for comprehensive Nigerian policing reform. Proponents argue that decentralizing policing authority to state control would enable a more effective and localized response to the country's persistent security challenges, thereby enhancing public safety.

Senator Adaramodu acknowledged that complete unanimity on any proposal in a nation of 200 million people was unlikely, yet he maintained that the majority of Nigerians support the establishment of state police as a vital solution to the nation's security concerns. He emphasized that the deliberations leading to the bill's transmission indicated a strong public desire for this reform.

Addressing concerns about potential delays, the Senate Chairman assured that the current 10th Senate is committed to completing the constitutional alteration process before the next legislative assembly convenes. The National Assembly expects prompt responses from the state Houses of Assembly, with an anticipation of receiving their decisions possibly by the following week, signaling a swift progression for the Nigerian Senate state police bill approval.

Lawyers and compliance officers in Nigeria should closely monitor the progress of the State Police Services Bill. Its eventual passage and implementation will fundamentally alter the country's security architecture and legal enforcement landscape, potentially impacting client operations, criminal defense strategies, and public law interpretations.

Source: Original reporting via The PUNCH