The Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, has proposed that funding for the planned state police services should be established as a first-line charge in the 1999 Constitution, arguing that financial autonomy is essential to shield the proposed policing system from political interference and ensure its operational independence.
Bamidele made the recommendation on Wednesday while addressing concerns raised by stakeholders over the proposed constitutional amendment seeking to establish state police, insisting that guaranteed funding would prevent governors and other powerful interests from exerting undue influence over the new security structure.
The Senate Leader, who also serves as Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution, acknowledged that many of the concerns expressed by Nigerians regarding state policing were legitimate and deserved careful attention.
“Nearly all the public concerns on the state police proposal are well founded and, obviously, cannot be swept under the carpet considering their weight and enormity,” he said.
According to Bamidele, the fears surrounding state police are rooted in Nigeria’s First Republic experience, when regional governments operated police forces that were widely criticised for political abuse.
He, however, assured Nigerians that the National Assembly was developing constitutional safeguards that would guarantee professionalism, accountability, discipline and institutional independence within the proposed policing framework.
Central to the proposal, he explained, is a constitutional provision that would classify funding for state police services as a first-line charge, similar to the financial arrangement currently enjoyed by the judiciary.
Bamidele noted that the judiciary’s financial independence enables it to function without executive interference because its allocations are charged directly on the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
“The funding of the judiciary is provided for in the 1999 Constitution. The Chief Justice of Nigeria, for instance, does not have to take her file to the President for approval on every procurement, unlike a minister or any member of the Federal Executive Council that must secure presidential approval to spend any money.
“That is why we call it a first-line charge. In other words, the Commissioner of Police and the State Police Service Commission must have a guaranteed source of funds provided for in the constitution in such a way that the police chief will not be subject to the whims and caprices of a state governor,” he said.
He warned that leaving the funding of state police entirely at the discretion of governors could undermine the effectiveness of the institution, particularly where disagreements arise between political leaders and police authorities.
“If a state police service is not responding well to the directives of a governor, he may choose not to fund it. We must prevent such a situation,” Bamidele stated.
He added that lawmakers were considering constitutional provisions that would compel states to dedicate a defined percentage of their budgets to the operations of state police services while clearly outlining access to those funds.
Beyond political interference, Bamidele cautioned that inadequate funding could expose state police to manipulation by wealthy individuals, business interests, organised criminal groups and other influential actors.
“Those who expressed concerns only talked of political abuse. But it is more than political abuse. If a state police service is not well funded, it is not only political actors that can abuse state police services.
“Business class can also abuse it. Some other organisations, even criminals or cabals, can abuse state police service because it is a question of ‘he who pays the piper dictates the tune’,” he said.
He stressed that establishing state police without a secure funding structure would defeat the objective of strengthening internal security across the federation.
Bamidele explained that the constitutional amendment under consideration seeks to move policing from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent Legislative List, thereby allowing state governments to establish and operate police services alongside the Nigeria Police Force.
Also speaking on the proposal, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, said the issue of funding must be comprehensively addressed before state police can become a reality.
According to him, a sustainable financing framework is essential to ensure the effectiveness, accountability and long-term viability of any decentralised policing system.
Both National Assembly leaders reaffirmed their commitment to producing a constitutional framework that strengthens security while protecting the operational independence and accountability of the proposed state police services.