State Police Bill at Advanced Stage, Reps Express Confidence in Tinubu’s Assent
The House of Representatives has disclosed that the proposed State Police Bill has reached an advanced stage of the legislative process, expressing confidence that President Bola Tinubu will promptly assent to the legislation once it is passed by the National Assembly and approved by at least two-thirds of the State Houses of Assembly.
Chairman of the House Special Ad-hoc Committee on Constitution Review and Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, gave the assurance during deliberations on the executive bill seeking to establish state police as part of the ongoing Sixth Alteration of the 1999 Constitution.
Kalu said the committee is carrying out a clause-by-clause consideration of the bill to ensure it adequately reflects the aspirations of Nigerians and addresses the country’s growing security challenges.
He described the proposed legislation as one of President Tinubu’s major constitutional reform initiatives aimed at strengthening internal security and improving policing across the federation.
According to the Deputy Speaker, the Senate has already considered and adopted the executive bill with amendments. He revealed that the House Constitution Review Committee would adopt the Senate’s report as its working document to facilitate harmonisation and accelerate the legislative process.
Kalu expressed optimism that the collaborative approach between both chambers of the National Assembly would hasten the passage of the bill, paving the way for transmission to the President for assent after securing the constitutional approval of the required number of state legislatures.
The proposed State Police Bill is one of the key constitutional amendment proposals currently before the National Assembly and is expected to reshape Nigeria’s policing structure by granting states constitutional powers to establish and operate their own police services alongside the Nigeria Police Force.