Deputy President of the Senate and Chairman of the 10th Senate Committee on Constitution Review, Senator Jibrin Barau, in this interview speaks on the proposed constitutional amendment to establish state police. He explains why the National Assembly backed the bill, the safeguards against political abuse, funding, operational structure and the next legislative steps. Sunday Aborisade brings excerpts.
Why did the Senate overwhelmingly support the proposed State Police Bill?
The purpose of this interview is to enlighten Nigerians on what the Senate passed before we proceeded on recess. The bill was an Executive Bill sponsored by President Bola Tinubu after extensive consultations with key stakeholders across the country.
For years, Nigerians have agitated for the establishment of state police through constitutional amendment. During the constitutional review exercise in the Ninth Senate, similar proposals came up but failed to secure the required votes.
Since then, the agitation has intensified because many Nigerians believe that strengthening our security architecture requires introducing state police alongside the existing federal policing system.
