President Bola Tinubu has inaugurated a Presidential Working Group to develop the legal framework for the implementation of state police across the country.
The committee, inaugurated on Tuesday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, is chaired by the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila.
Its members include the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, the National Security Adviser, the Inspector-General of Police, the President of the Nigerian Bar Association, the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and the Chairman of the NGF Committee on State Police.
Represented by Gbajabiamila, Tinubu said the proposed National Policing Bill would provide the legal and operational framework for state police following the Senate’s passage of the Constitution Alteration (State Police) Bill, 2026.
“The Constitution Amendment Bill establishes the framework for dual policing, but it does not operationalise it. That work is left to the National Policing Bill,” the President said.
According to him, the legislation will address key issues, including minimum policing standards, state readiness certification, federal-state coordination, accountability mechanisms, human rights safeguards and personnel transition.
Tinubu said the committee had been mandated to produce an implementation-ready draft bill for transmission to the National Assembly immediately after the constitutional amendment process is completed.
Attorney-General Lateef Fagbemi described the initiative as timely, citing Nigeria’s growing security challenges, and urged state governors to facilitate speedy ratification of the constitutional amendment by their respective Houses of Assembly.
President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Afam Osigwe, backed the establishment of state police but stressed the need for strong legal safeguards to prevent abuse and protect citizens’ rights.
Speaking on behalf of governors, Dapo Abiodun pledged the support of the 36 state governors for the initiative, expressing optimism that the constitutional amendment would be passed swiftly by state legislatures.
Abiodun said the state police framework would significantly boost Nigeria’s security architecture by increasing the number of law enforcement personnel and strengthening community policing across the country.
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