• New framework should commence after 2027 elections – Obi.
• CUPP urges Tinubu to first strengthen federal police • Deputy speaker Kalu dismisses funding fears
• HURIWA advocates liberalisation of gun ownership, says state police alone won’t end insecurity

The passage of the Constitution Alteration Bill seeking to establish state police across the federation by the Senate last Wednesday is raising fresh dust in the polity as many stakeholders have expressed fear that a hasty implementation of the law may create more problems for the country than it would solve.

Although they acknowledged the significance of the amendment, which ended Nigeria’s decades-long debate over decentralising the country’s policing structure to address worsening insecurity, the stakeholders argued that passage of the bill lacked adequate public scrutiny and also warned that rolling out the new policing structure before the 2027 polls could pave way for electoral malfeasance.

Speaking on Friday, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) for the 2027 elections, Peter Obi, called for the postponement of the roll out of state police to till after the 2027 general election, citing concerns that the new policing structure could be abused for political purposes.

Obi, who welcomed the Senate’s passage of the Constitution Alteration Bill on State Police, described the move as a significant legislative milestone, but argued that the process leading to its approval lacked adequate transparency and public participation.

The former Anambra State governor stated this in a post on his X handle titled, ‘State Police: Commendable Step, but Disorderly Legislation Raises Concerns of Political Misuse.’

According to him, the country’s highly centralised policing structure has long been unsuitable for a country of its size, diversity and complexity, making the establishment of state police a necessary reform.

“The recent passage of the State Police Bill by the National Assembly marks a significant legislative milestone in addressing a long-standing demand of the Nigerian people,” Obi said.

He noted that the legislative and constitutional process leading to the bill’s passage was shaky and raised legitimate concerns.

According to him, the process should have involved wider community participation and public hearings, particularly given the sensitivity of the proposed reform.

“The mechanism for passing the law appears highly disorganised, with no public hearing on such a sensitive issue. Indeed, the rush to enact the law without proper legislative procedures fuels suspicion among many observers about the political motives behind it,” he stated.

Obi said the greatest concern surrounding state police was the possibility of governors deploying the outfits to intimidate political opponents, suppress opposition activities and influence elections.

“There is a widespread, justifiable fear that state police forces could become instruments in the hands of governors. The suspicion is that a state-controlled police force could be weaponised to suppress political rivals, disrupt opposition rallies and manipulate elections,” he said.

To prevent such abuses, he called for the establishment of independent oversight institutions, including State Police Service Commissions insulated from executive interference.

Obi stated that state policing can only become an effective security solution if strong institutional safeguards are put in place to ensure accountability and protect public interest.

He further expressed doubts about the current administration’s ability to resist using state policing to influence the 2027 general election.

“Going by what Nigerians have seen so far, there is no guarantee that this administration can resist the temptation to take advantage of state policing to influence the 2027 general election by proxy.

“In view of that possibility and the danger it poses to the polity, it is necessary to defer its implementation until after the general election,” he said.

Similarly, the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) has cautioned against hasty implementation of the proposed state police system, warning that the constitutional reform could be undermined if not backed by strong legal safeguards and a strengthened Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

In a statement issued on Friday in Abuja, the Acting National Chairman of the coalition, Chief Peter Ameh, said the passage of the constitutional amendment bill by the Senate, following its earlier approval by the House of Representatives, marked a significant shift in Nigeria’s security architecture but should not be seen as a substitute for fixing the country’s overstretched federal police.

Ameh noted that while the creation of State Police offers an opportunity to improve local intelligence gathering, community policing and rapid response to crime, the Federal Government had yet to fulfill its promises to adequately recruit, equip and fund the NPF despite worsening insecurity across the country.

According to him, the failure to strengthen the centralised police system has exposed the limitations of relying solely

on a force controlled from Abuja to tackle banditry, kidnapping, insurgency, farmer-herder clashes, communal conflicts and other violent crimes.

He warned that without adequate safeguards, state police could be vulnerable to political manipulation, election interference, intimidation of political opponents and other abuses of power.

“The establishment of state police presents an opportunity to bridge existing security gaps. However, it is not a silver bullet. The speed with which this constitutional amendment is being pursued raises legitimate concerns about the adequacy of safeguards against abuse,” Ameh said.

The CUPP chairman also expressed concerns over possible disparities in funding among states, uneven professional standards and coordination challenges between federal and state security agencies.

He urged the National Assembly to incorporate minimum national operational standards, independent oversight mechanisms, accountability measures and sustainable funding arrangements into the enabling legislation to ensure effective implementation.

Ameh further called on the Tinubu administration to complement the proposed reform by fulfilling its long-standing commitment to recruit more police personnel, improve their welfare, provide modern equipment and strengthen the operational capacity of the NPF.

He also appealed to civil society organisations, traditional institutions, security experts and the media to closely monitor the implementation process and ensure professionalism, accountability and respect for human rights.

According to him, addressing Nigeria’s security crisis requires more than structural reforms. He stressed that government must also tackle poverty, unemployment, porous borders, corruption and weaknesses within the criminal justice system.

He maintained that although the state police initiative holds significant promise, its success would depend on transparent implementation, effective oversight and the political will to prioritise the safety and security of Nigerians.

Meanwhile, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, has dismissed concerns over the financial viability of the proposed state police, assuring Nigerians that the National Assembly is putting in place measures to ensure sustainable funding for the new policing structure.

Kalu gave the assurance on Friday while briefing journalists in Abuja after returning from a week-long engagement at Chatham House and the London Climate Action Week in the United Kingdom.

Addressing concerns that many states may lack the financial capacity to operate their own police services, the Deputy Speaker said lawmakers were already working on mechanisms to ensure funding does not become an obstacle to the successful implementation of the initiative.

“We are looking at how to make sure that funding will not be a problem with regard to state policing because, as you know, it is like taking some of the responsibility of the Federal Government for the states to handle,” he said.

According to him, the Tinubu administration has substantially increased allocations to states, giving them greater fiscal capacity to assume additional responsibilities, including policing.

“It is important to note that this current administration, which believes in federalism, has released more money to the states than ever before. So, it wouldn’t be out of place if Mr. President said, ‘I’m already sending the states a lot of money. Part of it should be used for this,’” Kalu said.

He disclosed that the National Assembly was also exploring other funding options that would guarantee the sustainability of state police.

“But as Parliament, we are looking at where we can get one or two things that will help funding not to become an issue. We will figure it out in the coming days,” he added.

Kalu said the current legislative recess was being used to perfect the constitutional amendment bill on state police, stressing that members of the National Assembly were working to ensure the legislation adequately addresses all concerns.

“In fact, that’s one of the reasons some of us are not on holiday. Even though we are on recess, we are here cracking our heads to see how we can put the bricks properly and build the wall of that legislative enactment in a way that it will be solid enough to carry the load that is going to be on it,” he said.

Responding to fears that governors could abuse state police for political purposes, the deputy speaker acknowledged that such concerns were legitimate but insisted that adequate safeguards had been incorporated into the proposed constitutional amendment.

He explained that the draft legislation provides clear guardrails on the powers, duties and responsibilities of state police while prescribing national minimum operational standards that every state police service must meet.

“They can increase the standard for the state, but they cannot go below the national minimum standard,” he said, adding that state police would not be permitted to engage in partisan activities or politically motivated operations.

Kalu further disclosed that once the constitutional amendment is concluded, the National Assembly would embark on a consequential repeal and re-enactment of the Police Act to provide the legal framework for the operation of state police and address implementation concerns raised by stakeholders.

However, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has warned that the establishment of state police alone will not end Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, urging the Federal Government to complement the proposed reform by liberalising gun ownership for law-abiding adults with clean criminal records.

The rights group argued that while the Senate’s passage of the Constitution Alteration Bill on State Police marks a significant milestone in Nigeria’s search for more effective security architecture, the country requires extensive security reforms to defeat terrorists, bandits, kidnappers and other violent criminal groups.

HURIWA made this known in a statement issued on Friday by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko.

While welcoming the Senate’s approval of the state police bill, HURIWA stated that it has consistently advocated the decentralisation of Nigeria’s policing system for nearly two decades, maintaining that a country of over 200 million people with diverse security challenges cannot be effectively policed from a single command structure.

It, however, cautioned against viewing the development as a complete solution to the nation’s security crisis.

“State police is necessary, but it is not a magic wand. It is not a silver bullet. It is not, by itself, the definitive answer to the grave security emergency confronting Nigeria,” the group said.

HURIWA reiterated its longstanding call for the liberalisation of firearm ownership, proposing that adult Nigerians with no criminal records should be permitted to possess sophisticated military-grade weapons for self-defence.

The association argued that responsible gun ownership would strengthen citizens’ ability to defend themselves against terrorists and other armed criminals, particularly in rural communities where security agencies often arrive after attacks have occurred.

It also urged security agencies to intensify efforts to identify and prosecute collaborators, sponsors and informants aiding terrorist and criminal groups, warning that meaningful security reforms cannot succeed without dismantling the networks supporting violent offenders.

The group further called for improved intelligence gathering, forensic investigations, surveillance technology and stronger collaboration among security agencies to enable preventive rather than reactive responses to attacks.

HURIWA added that government must also address the socio-economic factors driving insecurity, including unemployment, poverty, illiteracy and governance failures, which it said have created fertile grounds for criminal recruitment.

According to the association, millions of Nigerians, particularly those in rural communities, continue to live in fear as farmers abandon their farmlands, travellers face persistent kidnapping threats and communities increasingly resort to self-help because of dwindling confidence in the country’s security system.

The group also renewed its call for the establishment of a National Guard to complement existing security agencies during emergencies and periods of heightened insecurity.

HURIWA urged lawmakers, governors, traditional rulers and civil society organisations to ensure that the proposed state police framework incorporates safeguards against political abuse, ethnic discrimination and human rights violations.

It maintained that recruitment into state police formations must be transparent, while oversight institutions should remain independent to guarantee accountability and prevent the misuse of the new security structure.

The association added that although the passage of the State Police Bill represents an important step towards reforming Nigeria’s security architecture, lasting peace would depend on comprehensive measures that prioritise the protection of lives and property across the country.