State police amendment advances after approval by 28 assemblies
Nigeria’s proposed state police system has moved closer to becoming law after the National Assembly confirmed that 28 state Houses of Assembly approved a constitutional amendment seeking to provide for State Police Services.
Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamoru Ogunlana, said in a statement on Tuesday, November 3, that administrative preparations were underway to transmit the bill to President Bola Tinubu for assent.
The announcement marks a legislative milestone. It does not establish that the President has received or signed the amendment, or that state police services have begun operating.
Approvals exceed required state threshold
According to Ogunlana, his office verified the reports and accompanying legislative records submitted by the state assemblies to authenticate their decisions.
The 28 approvals exceed the minimum of 24 state assemblies identified in the statement as the constitutional requirement—two-thirds of Nigeria’s 36 states.
The proposed alteration seeks to provide a constitutional framework for State Police Services and related matters. Reuters also reported the approval milestone, describing the proposal as a shift towards allowing state-controlled police forces alongside Nigeria’s federal policing structure.
Transmission preparations underway
The bill was sent to state assemblies on September 16, with a request that they communicate their decisions within 30 days.
Ogunlana said his office would continue accepting reports from other assemblies until the amendment was transmitted for presidential assent.
Implementation remains a separate step
An earlier statement from the Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill reported that 24 assemblies had approved the constitutional amendment.
It also said separate draft policing legislation was undergoing review at the Federal Ministry of Justice. That statement does not establish whether the drafting and review process has since been completed.
The announcement sets out the amendment’s next procedural step but does not specify when state police services would begin operating.
