The Presidency has announced that public submissions on the proposed National Policing Bill will close by 5pm on Thursday, August 13, 2026, urging Nigerians to submit their views on the planned establishment of state police.
The Chief of Staff to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Chairman of the Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill, Femi Gbajabiamila, disclosed this on Wednesday.
Gbajabiamila said the consultation was intended to incorporate the experiences and professional expertise of Nigerians into the proposed legislation, particularly on issues surrounding political interference, police misconduct, oversight and intelligence-sharing between federal and state police services.
He stressed that the public consultation would not replace the constitutional role of the National Assembly, which would retain the authority to scrutinise, amend, reject or pass the Bill when transmitted.
Gbajabiamila urged Nigerians to make submissions on how state police could be insulated from political interference, who should investigate serious cases of police misconduct and how federal and state police authorities could effectively share intelligence across state boundaries.
“For too long, the debate has been framed as a choice between effective local policing and protection from political abuse. Nigeria needs both.
“We can bring policing closer to the people while building strong national standards, independent oversight and firm safeguards for every citizen. The time to fix policing in Nigeria is now, and we must see the work through,” he said.
He also warned that any state policing framework must contain strong safeguards against governors or other political actors using the police against political opponents, protesters, journalists, minority communities and other citizens.
According to him, while state police could bring law enforcement closer to communities and improve responses to local security challenges, its proximity to state governments creates legitimate concerns about political interference and abuse of power.
“But proximity does not guarantee justice. The concern that governors might use state police against political opponents, minority communities or dissenting voices is serious and must be answered in the design of the law,” he said.
Gbajabiamila added that state police services must operate within their lawful jurisdictions while remaining subject to the Constitution, human rights principles and the rule of law.
He said the proposed framework should provide for proper recruitment, training, equipment and supervision of officers, while ensuring that citizens have access to credible complaint and oversight mechanisms.
The former Speaker of the House of Representatives said the reform was aimed at creating a policing system that was “closer, faster and better informed by local conditions.”
He explained that officers familiar with a community’s language, geography and crime patterns would be better positioned to gather intelligence and respond to security threats.
However, he stressed that the reform must protect citizens from abuse regardless of their political affiliation.
“The law must protect citizens regardless of who holds office. It must protect opposition parties, peaceful protesters, journalists and minority communities.
“It must make unlawful orders easier to resist, misconduct easier to investigate and political interference harder to hide,” he said.
On the constitutional requirements for establishing state police, Gbajabiamila explained that Section 214 of the Constitution currently provides for only one police force — the Nigeria Police Force.
He said a constitutional amendment was therefore necessary before state police could be established.
According to him, both chambers of the National Assembly have approved proposed constitutional amendments providing for a Federal Police Service and State Police Services, but the process is yet to be completed.
He explained that the National Assembly must complete the remaining stages and transmit the amendment to the state Houses of Assembly, where it must receive the approval of at least 24 of the 36 state legislatures before being presented to the President for assent.
Gbajabiamila emphasised that until those constitutional steps are completed, state police remains only a proposal.
He also disclosed that the Presidential Working Group was developing the National Policing Bill alongside the constitutional amendment process.
The proposed Bill, he said, would establish national standards for recruitment, vetting, training, remuneration, pensions, equipment and professional conduct, as well as regulations covering the use of force, complaints, discipline, independent oversight, intelligence-sharing and cooperation between federal and state police services.
Gbajabiamila further clarified that state police would not automatically be established across the country even if the constitutional amendment and National Policing Bill become law.
“Each state that chooses to establish a service will still need its own enabling law, institutions and funding. It must also meet the national conditions for operation before its officers can begin policing,” he said.
He added that states that are not ready to establish their own police services would continue to be served by the Nigeria Police Force.
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