The presidency has announced that public submissions on the proposed National Police Bill will close by 5 pm on Thursday, August 13, 2026, urging Nigerians to submit their views on the planned establishment of state police.
The Chief of Staff to the President and Chairman of the Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill, Femi Gbajabiamila, disclosed this on Wednesday, saying the consultation was designed to incorporate the experiences and professional expertise of Nigerians into the proposed legislation.
He said the submissions would be particularly useful in addressing concerns over political interference, oversight, police misconduct, and intelligence sharing between federal and state police services.
He stated that the consultation would not replace the role of the National Assembly, which would have the authority to scrutinize, alter, reject, or pass the bill after it was delivered.
Gbajabiamila asked Nigerians to participate in the process, particularly on how to protect police services from political intrusion, who should probe major wrongdoing, and how federal and state forces can exchange intelligence across state lines.
He stated, “For too long, the debate has framed the choice as one 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.”
Gbajabiamila also emphasized that the planned state police system should include strong protections to prevent governors from employing force against political opponents, protestors, journalists, minority communities, and other individuals.
Gbajabiamila, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, stated that while state police may bring policing closer to communities and improve responses to local security threats, their proximity to state governments creates valid worries about political meddling and abuse of authority.
He said, “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 also stated that state police agencies must have lawful authority within their territories while adhering to the constitution, human rights, and the rule of law.
According to him, the proposed framework should ensure that police officers are appropriately recruited, trained, equipped, and supervised and that civilians have access to reliable complaint and monitoring procedures.
Gbajabiamila stated that the reforms aim to create a policing system that is “closer, faster, and better informed by local conditions,” noting that officers who are familiar with a community’s language, geography, and crime patterns will be better positioned to gather intelligence and respond to security threats.
He did, however, emphasize that the reform must safeguard citizens from abuse, regardless of party membership.
“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.
Regarding the legislative procedure, Gbajabiamila explained that the constitution currently provides for just one police force, the Nigeria Police Force, under Section 214, necessitating constitutional amendment before state police can be established.
He stated that both chambers of the National Assembly had accepted proposed constitutional modifications establishing a federal police service and state police services, but the process was not yet complete.
According to him, the National Assembly must finish the remaining phases and transfer the amendment to the state houses of assembly, where it must be accepted by at least 24 of the 36 state legislatures before being sent to the president for assent.
He emphasized that until those procedures were fulfilled, state police remained a suggestion.
Gbajabiamila also revealed that the Presidential Working Group was writing the National Policing Bill concurrently with the constitutional amendment process.
He stated that the bill would establish national standards for recruitment, vetting, training, remuneration, pensions, equipment, and professional conduct, as well as rules governing the use of force, complaints, discipline, independent oversight, intelligence sharing, and cooperation between federal and state police departments.
He stated that even if the constitutional change and the National Policing Bill He stated that passing the constitutional change and the National Policing Bill would not automatically establish state police across the country; state police would not be established across the country automatically.
“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.
Gbajabiamila stated that a state that is not ready to develop its own police agency will continue to Gbajabiamila stated that the Nigeria Police Force will continue to serve any state that is not ready to develop its own police agency. by the Nigeria Police Force.
