NEWS
Reps Panel to Consider President Tinubu’s State Police Bill Today as Push for Landmark Security Reform Gains Momentum
The House of Representatives Special Ad-hoc Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution is set to consider President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Executive Constitution Alteration Bill on the establishment of State Police today, Monday, July 20, 2026, in what is widely regarded as a major step towards overhauling Nigeria’s security architecture.
The proposed legislation, which has generated widespread national interest, seeks to create a constitutional framework for the establishment of State Police Services across the country while retaining the Federal Police Service as the nation’s primary policing institution until individual states meet the legal requirements to operate their own police services.
The Bill also provides for the creation of State Police Service Commissions to oversee the appointment, discipline and administration of personnel at the state level.
According to the 26 clauses proposed by the Presidency, the Executive Bill seeks to amend Sections 84(4), 89(2), 121(3b) by inserting a new subsection (3c), 124(4), 129(2), 153(1), 157(2), 158(1), 160 by inserting immediately after subsection (2) a new subsection (3), 197(1), 201(2) and 204 of the Constitution.
It further seeks to amend Chapter VI Part III of the 1999 Constitution, delete and substitute Sections 214, 215 and 216, as well as amend the Second Schedule, Part I of the Third Schedule, Part III of the Constitution, Part III of the Fifth Schedule and Section 318(1), respectively.
As indicated in the explanatory memorandum of the legislative framework, the Bill seeks to “preserves the Federal Police Service as the default police service in any State until a State Police Service is lawfully established and certified operational, and preserves the continuing federal policing role in every State and in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
“The Bill establishes constitutional guardrails for civilian control, human rights, national minimum standards, independent police service commissions, intergovernmental cooperation, criminal information systems, firearms control, and exceptional federal intervention in State policing in cases of breakdown, serious incapacity, national security threat, or egregious abuse.”
The memorandum further explains that “The Bill however leaves the detailed organisation, procedures, operational control, certification, complaints mechanisms, grants, and implementation arrangements to subsequent Acts of the National Assembly and, where applicable, to the Laws of the Houses of Assembly of States.”
The Executive Bill was designed to strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture by constitutionally defining the respective roles of the Federal Police Service and State Police Services while prescribing national minimum policing standards across the federation.
It also proposes amendments to the definition of the public service of the Federation and the states by replacing references to the Nigeria Police Force with the Federal Police Service, while recognising members and staff of State Police Services and State Police Service Commissions as part of the public service.
Another significant provision of the Bill relates to the appointment and removal of police leadership. It proposes that the Inspector-General of the Federal Police Service may be removed from office by the President acting on an address supported by a two-thirds majority of the Senate on the grounds of misconduct, incapacity or gross violation of the Constitution.
Similarly, a State Commissioner of Police may be removed by the Governor upon an address supported by a two-thirds majority of the State House of Assembly on the same grounds. The provision is intended to strengthen accountability while protecting the operational independence of the leadership of both the Federal Police Service and the proposed State Police Services.
The proposed constitutional amendment also seeks to replace Section 214 of the Constitution to formally establish a Federal Police Service for the Federation alongside a State Police Service for each state.
However, under the proposal, a State Police Service can only commence operations after it has been established through a law enacted by the relevant State House of Assembly and certified as meeting the national minimum policing standards prescribed by an Act of the National Assembly. Until such certification is obtained, the Federal Police Service will continue to perform policing functions in the affected state. Even after a State Police Service becomes operational, the Federal Police Service will continue to handle federal policing responsibilities and may provide assistance to state police when necessary.
Barring any last-minute changes, the Special Ad-hoc Committee is expected to conclude its consideration of the Executive Bill and subsequently present its report before the House of Representatives upon resumption of plenary for further legislative action.
If eventually passed by the National Assembly and approved through the constitutional amendment process, the legislation is expected to usher in one of the most significant reforms of Nigeria’s policing system since the return to democratic rule, providing a constitutional basis for state policing while maintaining national oversight and uniform minimum standards.