The fear of using state police officers for personal vendetta or silencing the opposition is real. This is where we need strong institutions like the office of the federal Attorney-General and Inspector General of Police. We also need a strong judiciary that can check the excesses of the executive branch. As I am proffering this solution I am also wondering whether any local judge can controvert as state governor!
ONE of the persistent and consistent cries of the polity since 1999 is the need to establish state police. This is because it is now obvious to stakeholders that the current centralized policing with an IG in Abuja is not working. The rising wave of banditry and kidnapping has made it imperative for additional layer and command of security forces.
The organ of state that is charged with internal security is the Police and other agencies. Not the military. Also, there is no love lost between the citizens and men of the Nigeria Police Force. There is lack of trust. No confidence. Thus, in creating state police, it should not be modelled after the current policing socio-cultural ethos and practices.
Indeed, it is an anomaly to brand State governors as Chief Security Officer of their respective states when they have no police officer under their command. The call has become more strident with the deterioration of the security situation in the last three odd years. It is true that Nigeria never had State Police. Before the attainment of independence, that is from 1930 to 1960, we had Native Authority Police. It means that policing was decentralized. 1n 1930, the NPF was created by merging the northern and southern police forces. But the Native Authority police existed for the regions. The 1960 Constitution placed policing on the concurrent list. After the first coup, the military government centralized everything. The government reasoned at the time that it would prevent ‘regional/ethnic militias. How wrong they were! Now we have an Army that is too ethnicity-conscious.
Nigeria with a population of about 236 million and a land mass of 923,768 sq km/357,669 sq miles, land area of 910,768 sq km, water area of 13,000 sq km, is too big for a single police force to be effective. The coastline is 853 km and a total border length of 4,047 kilometers covering Benin, Niger, Chad and Cameroun. The Nigeria Police force has a numerical strength of 371,000 making it a ratio of one police officer 500-600 citizens. Of this number about 100,000 are deployed to protect VIPs. As it is, the Police can only afford 1 policeman for every 600, against the UN minimum of 1 to 450.
As governor of Lagos, Senator Bola Tinubu championed the call for state policing. He also canvased for the removal of creation of local governments from the federal constitution and make the process local. By transmitting the bill for the establishment of State Police, the president has walked his talk. The buck stops at his desk and with overwhelming control over the National Assembly he can swing this. At the moment we are told that the National Assembly is working on a harmonized version of guidelines for the establishment of state police.
Opponents of State Police canvas the view that the men and officers of a state police would become the terror squad of incumbent governors. This fear is real as it happened during the Native Authority days. They also say that funding could be a problem and that the federal government should revisit the revenue allocation formula which gives the lion share to the FG at 52% with the states taking 26.72%. This makes sense if additional responsibilities are devolved to the States.
With the constant and increased threats to life and property in the states, the time has come for the establishment of state policing. In a sense, in Nigeria, with the creation of Amotekun in southwest (2020), Ebube Agu southeast (2021), Operation Shege Ka Fasa North west, Civilian JTF and Hisbah in the north we have created state police in all but name in different forms.
On June 24 2026, the Nigerian Senate passed the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (Alteration) (State Police) Bill 2026. The bill was sponsored by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele after it was transmitted by the President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu. 84 senators out of 109 voted in favour of the bill. At 77.06%, it garnered overwhelming support. True that at voting time, the electronic system ran into a glitch. Voting was then done manually by a show of the hands. The Senate is yet to release a list of their members who voted against or abstained. It would be interesting to know why some senators voted against the bill. Senator Ali Ndume (APC Borno South) supported state police but expressed the view that it was being hastily done. It is on record too that Senators Enyinnaya Abaribe and Aminu Tambuwal supported the bill but wanted safeguards against abuse.
On June 11, the House of representatives passed the same bill. The next stage is approval by a majority of the 36 State Houses of Assembly and a presidential assent. Since the passage of the bill, there has been silence somewhat perhaps because underground work is ongoing to perfect the process.
The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) has formally backed the State Police Bill. After their meetings, Chairman Governor Abdul Rahman AbdulRazzaq said that the governors ‘threw their weight behind the immediate establishment of state police’ and are ‘working on a a framework for governance, funding, and oversight’. However, Borno State governor Babagana Zulum is on record saying ‘I will not support it. Nigeria is not mature for state police. Some state governors can use it to wipe away other tribes if half the power is given”. Stakeholders in Edo and Sokoto have also expressed reservations. For example, Edo State says it would await ‘clear federal government guidelines’ before taking a position.
The bill makes provision for a ‘Dual Police Framework, thereby replacing the behemoth that was the Nigeria Police Force. Under the new arrangement, while federal police will handle border security, cybercrime, terrorism, interstate crimes, FCT, and federal institutions, State Police will enforce state laws, maintain public order, and protect lives and property locally.
The fear of using state police officers for personal vendetta or silencing the opposition is real. This is where we need strong institutions like the office of the federal Attorney-General and Inspector General of Police. We also need a strong judiciary that can check the excesses of the executive branch. As I am proffering this solution I am also wondering whether any local judge can controvert as state governor!
In summary, we need local policing to check the menace of kidnapping and cattle-herders clashes. There should safeguards so that some governors don’t abuse the system. The call as expressed by Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra state for the States to have their own Supreme Courts is unnecessary. But the number of judges and courts should be increased. The States must build correctional centres to keep detainees.
- Professor Eghagha is of the Dept of English, University of Lagos
