The Enugu State House of Assembly has passed an alteration bill of the 1999 constitution for the establishment of state police.
The Assembly passed the alteration bill as part of efforts to amend the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to provide a legal framework for state policing.
Speaking in support of the bill, the member representing Ezeagu constituency, Chima Obieze, described the alteration bill as a game changer.
“The establishment of state police will decentralize the policing architecture of the country and will also be more effective in protection of lives and property across the state,” Obieze said.
Obieze also expressed optimism that decentralizing Nigeria’s policing system would strengthen security and improve responses to threats in local communities, reiterating that it would enable police in the state to address local security challenges.
Lending his support to bill, member representing Nkanu East constituency, Okey Mbah posited that establishing the state police would curtail incessant violence and herdsmen attacks in different parts of the state.
While citing the attack on Nimbo community, Mbah disclosed that in spite of repeated security warnings about the incident, the security operatives failed to respond effectively which contributed to the loss of many lives.
“A decentralized policing structure can improve intelligence gathering and response to security threats, particularly attacks on farming communities,” Mbah reiterates.
On his part, Mr. Osita Okoh representing Enugu East Constituency said the bill is an opportunity to advance a long standing call for reforms in Nigeria’s security architecture, adding that it would give governors greater practical authority to address security challenges in their respective states as chief security officers.
However, Mr Harrison Ogara (Igboeze South Constituency) warned that state police formations could be used to intimidate political opponents or suppress dissent if adequate safeguards were not put in place.
Ogara stressed the need for effective oversight mechanisms to prevent political interference and ensure that state police personnel operate professionally and in accordance with the law.
He also raised concerns about the funding and control of state police, saying that the proposed system must have clear accountability structures and sustainable financing arrangements to ensure its effectiveness.
Speaker shortly after the passage of the bill, the Speaker of the House, Chief Uche Ugwu, said that the importance of state policing could not be overemphasized, adding that Nigeria’s centralized policing structure required fundamental reform to address the country’s diverse security challenges.
Ugwu said that ethnic considerations and perceived bias had undermined public confidence in the existing policing arrangement, making a decentralized system worthy of consideration.
He added that the proposed changes in the naming of the police institutions from the Nigeria Police Force to the Federal Police Service, alongside the establishment of State Police Service could contribute to a shift in institutional orientation and personnel attitudes.
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