State Police move advances as Senate passes constitutional amendment Bills

The Senate has passed constitutional amendment bills seeking to establish state police across Nigeria, marking a significant step towards restructuring the country’s security architecture.

GazettePost reports that the proposed amendments aim to create a legal framework that would allow state-controlled police forces to operate alongside the existing federal police system.

The move is designed to strengthen security nationwide by improving intelligence gathering, enhancing community policing, and ensuring faster responses to local security threats.

The passage of the bills by the Senate is being viewed as a major milestone in ongoing efforts to tackle rising insecurity across the country, including banditry, kidnapping, insurgency, armed robbery, and communal clashes.

Supporters of the initiative argue that state police will enable sub-national governments to play a more active role in protecting lives and property, while critics have continued to express concerns over possible political abuse of the security outfits by state governments.

For the constitutional amendments to take effect, they must receive the approval of at least two-thirds of the 36 State Houses of Assembly before being transmitted to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for assent.

If eventually signed into law, the development would represent one of the most far-reaching reforms of Nigeria’s policing system since the return to democratic rule in 1999.