The National Assembly has completed the legislative process for the proposed establishment of state police, following the ratification of the constitutional amendment by 28 state Houses of Assembly.
The Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamoru Ogunlana, confirmed on Tuesday that the number of approving state legislatures had exceeded the constitutional requirement of 24 out of Nigeria’s 36 states.
The development clears the way for the proposed amendment to be transmitted to President Bola Tinubu for the next stage of the process.
Under Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution, a constitutional amendment requires the approval of at least two-thirds of the state Houses of Assembly before it can proceed.
The bill was forwarded to the state legislatures on September 16, 2026, with an initial 30-day period for consideration. However, the National Assembly continued to receive resolutions after the deadline of October 15 to ensure that all submissions were properly documented.
Ogunlana said his office had completed the necessary administrative checks on the resolutions and accompanying Votes and Proceedings submitted by the state assemblies.
He added that the documentation was being finalised in accordance with the Acts Authentication Act of 2004.
The clerk also clarified that constitutional amendment bills do not require a formal third reading before transmission to the President, unlike ordinary legislative bills.
If the amendment takes effect, it would pave the way for states to establish and operate their own police forces, marking a significant shift from Nigeria’s existing centralised policing system under the Nigeria Police Force.
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Supporters of state police have argued that decentralising law enforcement would strengthen local intelligence gathering, improve response times and help states tackle security challenges, including kidnapping, banditry and insurgency.
They maintain that state-controlled police formations would be better positioned to understand local security threats and respond more quickly to emergencies.
However, critics have raised concerns about the possibility of governors using state police to target political opponents, as well as the financial burden of maintaining separate police structures and the potential for human rights abuses.
The proposal has remained a major subject of debate in Nigeria’s security and constitutional reform discussions, with advocates calling for a policing structure that reflects the country’s diverse security needs.
With 28 state assemblies having reportedly approved the measure, attention now shifts to the next constitutional steps and the proposed transmission of the bill to President Tinubu.