President Bola Tinubu has called on the National Assembly to begin the process of amending the constitution to incorporate state police, saying the move is essential to tackling the country’s escalating security challenges.
The president made the call on Wednesday, February 25, while addressing senators at an interfaith Iftar fast-breaking event at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
Tinubu said Nigeria’s security situation demanded a more decentralised approach to policing and urged lawmakers to begin working out the framework for the constitutional amendment.
“Nigeria is in an extremely bigger challenge. We are facing terrorism, banditry, insurgency, but you never fail to make a right response to this course,” Tinubu said.
“What I want to ask for tonight is for you to start thinking how best, to amend the Constitution to incorporate the state police. This is for us to secure our country, take over our forest from marauders, free our children from fear,” he added.
The president struck a tone of unity, describing the gathering as a reflection of the country’s commitment to working together despite its challenges.
“Indivisible commitment to humanity is what we gather here to express to one another. Tonight, we are committed to the Nigeria entity succeeding, we are committed to make law for the welfare prosperity of the country,” Tinubu said.
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“I think we are committed together to govern together. We thank God for the real privilege of breaking the bread together.
“The season of reflection, sacrifice, compassion and national unity is reflected by you tonight, and I don’t take it lightly,” he added.
The president’s call aligns with the position already taken by Nigeria’s 36 state governors, who endorsed the creation of state police back in 2024 following the submission of reports to the National Economic Council.
The debate around state police has been a recurring issue in Nigeria’s governance conversation for years.
Proponents argue that a decentralised policing structure would allow states to respond more quickly and effectively to local security threats, rather than depending solely on a centralised federal police force that is often overstretched and unfamiliar with local dynamics.
Critics, however, have raised concerns about the potential for abuse, warning that state governors could weaponise state police forces against political opponents and opposition figures.
There are also questions about funding, training, and the capacity of individual states to manage their own police forces effectively.
Any amendment to incorporate state police into the constitution would require approval by two-thirds of both chambers of the National Assembly and ratification by at least 24 of the country’s 36 state Houses of Assembly.