On Tuesday, the House of Representatives passed, for second reading, a Bill for an Act to alter the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) to make provision for the establishment of State Police.
Sponsored by the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, and 14 other lawmakers, the bill seeks to alter the 1999 Constitution to provide for the establishment of State Police and the transfer of Police as an item under the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent List.
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Some key innovations to the proposed alteration include the transfer of “Police” from the “Exclusive Legislative List” to the “Concurrent Legislative List”, a move that effectively empowers States to have State-controlled policing, and the introduction of a comprehensive framework to ensure cohesion as well as accountability and uniform standards between the Federal Police and State Police Forces.
Others are the provision of prescribed rigorous safeguards, preventing unwarranted interference by the Federal Police in State Police affairs, emphasising collaboration and intervention only under well-defined circumstances, and the establishment of State Police Service Commissions as distinct from the Federal Police Service Commission with clearly defined roles and jurisdictions.
Also, the proposed amendments seek a re-calibration of the National Police Council to include the Chairmen of the State Police Service Commissions, emphasising the collaborative and consultative nature of policing in the federal system, and a recognition of the possible financial challenges which may be faced by States Police, by empowering the Federal Government to provide grants or aids subject to the approval of the National Assembly.
Leading the debate on the general principles of the Bill, one of the sponsors, Tolani Shagaya, from Kwara State, said at this point in Nigeria, State Policing was not only inevitable, but urgently desired to tackle the mounting challenges of insecurity.
Shagaya also said the Bill was informed as a necessary response to several calls for a decentralised and community-oriented approach to law enforcement in Nigeria.
He stressed that the planned legislation seeks to navigate the complex landscape of security challenges by empowering the states with the means to address issues unique to their localities.
The lawmaker maintained that the proposed alteration represents not just a legal adjustment to the country’s ground norm, but a visionary leap towards a safer, more secure, and more harmonious Nigeria.
“Mr Speaker, Honourable Colleagues, as we deliberate on this historic Bill, let us transcend party lines and ideologies and focus unwaveringly on the collective good of our beloved nation.
“The establishment of State Police is a clarion call for a tailored, community-centric policing system; it is an acknowledgment that our states are uniquely positioned to address the security challenges within their borders.
“The alterations proposed in this Bill are not just alterations to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, they are also the building blocks of a more secure, accountable, and resilient Nigeria,”, he added.
After an extensive debate largely in support of the Bill, it was thereafter referred to the House Committee on Constitution Review by the presiding officer, Deputy Speaker Kalu, who advised lawmakers to send their concerns on the proposed legislation to the panel, which he also chairs.