The House of Representatives on Thursday approved the Constitution Alteration Bill seeking to establish State Police across Nigeria, despite a protest and walkout by members of the minority caucus, who argued that the legal framework required further refinement and that the constitutional amendment process was not properly followed.
The bill, titled “A Bill for an Act to alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to provide for the establishment of state police services and for related matters,” secured the constitutionally required two-thirds majority after consideration by the House.
The legislation was transmitted to the National Assembly by President Bola Tinubu as part of the administration’s efforts to decentralise policing and strengthen the country’s security architecture amid persistent insecurity across several parts of Nigeria.
If it is harmonised with the Senate version, approved by at least two-thirds of the 36 state Houses of Assembly and assented to by the President in line with constitutional requirements for constitutional amendments, the legislation will create the constitutional basis for the establishment of State Police Services.
Presenting the report of the House Committee on Constitution Review, Deputy Speaker and Committee Chairman, Benjamin Kalu, described the proposal as one of the most significant constitutional reforms in Nigeria’s security sector.
