By Erewunmi Peace

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has urged the Senate of Nigeria to support the establishment of state police as part of broader efforts to tackle insecurity across the country.

The President made the call during a meeting with senators at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, stressing the urgent need to reform Nigeria’s security architecture. He emphasized that the current centralised policing system may no longer be sufficient to address growing security challenges.

Call for Constitutional Amendment

Tinubu noted that creating state police would require an amendment to the 1999 Constitution. He therefore encouraged lawmakers to initiate and support the necessary legislative process to make decentralised policing possible.

Currently, policing in Nigeria is controlled at the federal level under the Nigeria Police Force.

The proposed reform would allow individual states to establish and manage their own police units to address local security concerns more effectively.

Why State Police?

The President highlighted issues such as terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, and communal clashes as reasons why Nigeria needs a more flexible and locally responsive security framework.

Supporters of state police argue that:

• It would improve response time to local threats
• Enhanc community-based policing
• Reduce pressure on federal security agencies

However, critics have also raised concerns about possible political misuse by state governments.

What Happens Next?

For state police to become a reality, the National
Assembly must pass a constitutional amendment, which would also require approval by a two-thirds majority of state Houses of Assembly.

The President’s appeal signals that security reform may become a major focus of legislative discussions in the coming months.