Nigeria’s long-debated proposal to establish state police has moved significantly closer to reality, with the Presidency confirming that work on the constitutional and legal framework is now at an advanced stage and an amendment is expected soon.
The Chief of Staff to the President, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, disclosed this on Thursday after a high-level consultative meeting held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, describing months of sustained deliberations between the executive, the National Assembly, and security agencies.
According to him, the process, initiated under the directive of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has gained substantial traction after months of technical and policy consultations.
“We started deliberations in the last three or four months on how to go about the establishment of state police as directed by Mr President,” Gbajabiamila said.
He stressed that the complexity of the proposal required careful constitutional scrutiny rather than rushed implementation.
“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. Hopefully, the amendment will come shortly, and the details of the amendment will come after that,” he added.
Gbajabiamila explained that discussions have now shifted decisively to constitutional amendment proposals, which will be followed by enabling legislation once the legal framework is secured.
“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,” he said.
He further noted that the conversation has moved beyond whether Nigeria should adopt state policing, focusing instead on how the system will be structured and implemented.
The initiative is being positioned as a key reform aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s internal security architecture.
Gbajabiamila said the President would be presented with a comprehensive report on the outcome of the consultations, which form part of a broader national effort to design a workable policing model.
The meeting brought together senior figures across government and security institutions, including the Deputy President of the Senate, Jibrin Barau; Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu; Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi; and the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, among other senior officials.
The consultative process, officials say, is part of ongoing efforts to modernise Nigeria’s security framework by strengthening local intelligence structures and improving responsiveness to emerging threats across the federation.
The Presidency reiterated that state police remains a central component of wider security reforms currently under consideration.
Ezinwanne Onwuka, senior staff reporter and columnist with WAP is a Nigerian-based writer and content developer. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Her interests include reading, writing, researching and graphic designing.
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