The proposed establishment of state police in Nigeria has received fresh support following endorsements by the Ekiti and Kebbi State Houses of Assembly, bringing the number of states backing the constitutional amendment to 15.
The development marks another step in the ongoing efforts to decentralise the country’s policing system amid persistent security challenges, including kidnapping, banditry and other criminal activities.
In Kebbi State, 20 lawmakers supported the proposal during a plenary session presided over by the Speaker, Salihu Dangoje. The resolution followed deliberations on the bill presented by the Chairman of the House Committee on Internal Security, Muhammad Garba Bena.
Bena said state police would strengthen security operations, improve responses to security threats and help protect lives and property. He added that the proposal would allow state governments to establish their own police services and recruit personnel in accordance with the law.
In Ekiti State, the House of Assembly passed the constitutional amendment bill with the support of all 21 lawmakers present. The Speaker, Adeoye Aribasoye, directed the Clerk of the Assembly to transmit the bill to the National Assembly alongside the legislature’s observations.
Aribasoye said the establishment of state police had remained a subject of national discussion for more than two decades. He highlighted concerns over delayed responses to distress calls, limited operational reach and the distance between security agencies and local communities.
The Speaker also said a properly structured state police system could improve accountability by bringing policing leadership and oversight closer to residents and their elected representatives, subject to constitutional safeguards.
The 15 states that have backed the proposed amendment are Ekiti, Kebbi, Osun, Edo, Oyo, Rivers, Zamfara, Kwara, Nasarawa, Ogun, Delta, Taraba, Cross River, Plateau and Enugu.
However, the proposal still requires approval from at least 24 of Nigeria’s 36 State Houses of Assembly, representing the two-thirds majority required for a constitutional amendment.
The National Assembly will need to receive the required number of state approvals before the constitutional amendment process can proceed to the next stage.
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