Presidency: Constitutional Framework of the State Police being completed – THISAGE

Significant progress has been made towards the establishment of the State Police, with a constitutional amendment expected shortly, following months of consultations between the Executive, the National Assembly and the security authorities.

The Chief of Staff to the President, Hon Femi Gbajabiamila, disclosed this on Thursday while briefing State House correspondents after a consultative meeting on state police convened by the Presidency, held at the State House, Abuja.

Gbajabiamila said deliberations on the proposed framework for the state police began several months ago following a directive from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, stressing that the process has gained considerable traction.

He explained that the establishment of the state police requires careful consideration of constitutional and legal issues and cannot be hastily implemented.

“We have started discussions over the last three to four months on how to go about establishing the state police as directed by Mr. President.

“Establishing the state police is not something that can be done with a snap of the fingers. There is a lot to be done in terms of constitution and legality, and thank God we have gained a lot of popularity now.

“Hopefully, the amendment will come soon, and the details of the amendment will come later,” Gbajabiamila added.

According to him, the discussion has now reached the point of considering the necessary constitutional changes, which will be followed by delegated legislation.

“Right now, what we are looking at is the constitutional amendment itself, and then the enabling law would follow. This is what we have been deliberating on for the last two hours,” he added.

The Chief of Staff highlighted the broad national support for the initiative, underlining that the debate is no longer about whether to establish the state police, but about creating the appropriate legal and institutional framework for its functioning.

He said President Tinubu, who has consistently supported the state police as part of efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture, would receive a full report on the findings of the meeting.

The meeting is part of a series of consultations convened by the federal government to develop a workable framework for the establishment of the state police, an initiative aimed at strengthening internal security, improving local intelligence collection and enhancing the capacity of subnational governments to address emerging security challenges across the country.

President Tinubu has argued in recent months that the state police is a necessary response to Nigeria’s evolving security challenges, arguing that a decentralized policing structure would strengthen basic security, improve intelligence gathering and enhance the protection of lives and property across the country.

The meeting was attended by Deputy Speaker of the Senate, Jibrin Barau, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi and Inspector General of Police, Tunji Disu, among other senior government officials.

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