President Bola Tinubu has formally transmitted a Constitution Alteration Bill to the Senate seeking the establishment of state police as part of broader efforts to reform Nigeria’s security architecture.
The proposed legislation was read during plenary on Tuesday by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
According to the President, the bill aims to provide a legal framework for a dual policing system that would allow state governments to establish and operate their own police services alongside the federal police structure.
Tinubu stated that the proposed constitutional amendment forms a key component of ongoing efforts to restructure Nigeria’s policing framework and strengthen security across the country. He argued that decentralising certain policing responsibilities would improve law enforcement efficiency and enhance the protection of lives and property.
Under the proposed arrangement, communities, municipalities, and local government areas are expected to play more active roles in maintaining security and supporting policing operations within their jurisdictions.
The move is expected to reignite national discussions on state policing, a subject that has generated significant debate among policymakers, security experts, and stakeholders over concerns relating to funding, accountability, operational control, and the potential for abuse by state governments.
If passed by the National Assembly and approved through the constitutional amendment process, the legislation would mark one of the most significant reforms to Nigeria’s security system since the country’s return to democratic rule in 1999.
President Tinubu sends a constitutional amendment bill to the Senate for the establishment of state police.
The Senate will consider the constitutional amendment bill for the establishment of state police tomorrow.
The Senate President, Sen. Akpabio, announced that the states… pic.twitter.com/0ThQOjmCM5
— Imran Muhammad (@Imranmuhdz) June 23, 2026
