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The establishment of state police in Nigeria is moving closer to reality, with a constitutional amendment expected soon, the Presidency has confirmed.
Chief of Staff to the President, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, disclosed the progress on Thursday while briefing State House correspondents after a consultative meeting on state policing convened at the State House, Abuja.
Gbajabiamila said deliberations on the proposed framework began several months ago under the directive of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and have gained significant traction.
“Establishing state police is not something that you do with the snap of the fingers. There is a lot involved in terms of constitution and legalities, and thank God we have now gained a lot of traction,” he said.
He explained that the focus of current discussions is on the constitutional amendment necessary to establish state police, with enabling legislation to follow afterwards.
“Right now, what we are looking at is the constitutional amendment itself, and then the enabling law would follow thereafter. That is what we have been deliberating on in the last couple of hours,” Gbajabiamila added.
The Chief of Staff stressed that the debate has shifted from whether state police should exist to how to create the appropriate legal and institutional framework for its operation.
President Tinubu has long championed the idea of state police, arguing that a decentralized policing structure would strengthen grassroots security, enhance intelligence gathering, and improve protection of lives and property nationwide.
The consultative meeting, part of a series organized by the Federal Government, included the Deputy Senate President, Jibrin Barau; Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu; Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi; and Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, among other senior officials.
The initiative aims to bolster internal security, improve local intelligence gathering, and empower state governments to address evolving security challenges more effectively.
