ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has formally forwarded a Constitution Alteration Bill seeking the establishment of state police services to the Senate, marking a significant step in the push to decentralise Nigeria’s policing structure.
The development was disclosed on Tuesday by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during plenary, where he informed lawmakers that the upper chamber would consider the proposed constitutional amendment on Wednesday.
Akpabio also revealed that state governments had indicated their readiness to consider the proposal immediately after it is transmitted to the state Houses of Assembly.
The bill seeks to amend relevant provisions of the 1999 Constitution to provide the legal foundation for the creation and operation of state police services across the federation.
The move follows sustained advocacy by President Tinubu for constitutional reforms that would empower states to play a more direct role in securing their territories.
READ ALSO Senate Approve Tinubu’s Troop Deployment To Benin
In February, the President called on the National Assembly to amend the Constitution to accommodate state policing, arguing that the reform had become necessary in addressing terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and other security threats confronting the country.
During his Democracy Day address earlier this month, Tinubu reiterated his administration’s determination to combat insecurity, declaring that terrorists, bandits and their sponsors would face the full force of the law.
The President stated that more than 13,000 terrorists had been neutralised within the previous year and noted a significant reduction in terrorism-related deaths compared to earlier periods.
Despite these gains, he acknowledged that the continued captivity of schoolchildren abducted in Oyo and Borno states remained a painful reminder of the nation’s ongoing security challenges.
The proposal for state police has gathered momentum in recent months as both chambers of the National Assembly intensified efforts to review the Constitution and devolve certain policing powers to state governments.
The Senate is expected to reconvene for a crucial session to deliberate on the bill, which many observers regard as one of the most far-reaching security reforms proposed since Nigeria returned to democratic rule.