Senate Leader: State Police Can’t Wait as Insecurity Deepens

* Bamidele says proposal enjoys nationwide consensus, overwhelming legislative backing

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

Leader of the Senate, Opeyemi Bamidele, has defended the proposed establishment of state police, declaring that the constitutional amendment bill was conceived out of the country’s worsening security challenges rather than political expediency.

Bamidele stated this in a statement he personally signed and made available to journalists in Abuja on Sunday by his Media Office.

He was reacting to growing public debate over the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (Alteration) (State Police) Bill, 2026.

Bamidele said the proposal reflected years of nationwide consultations and broad consensus among critical stakeholders, insisting that it should not be reduced to partisan politics.

The Senate had on June 24 passed the bill as part of the ongoing constitutional amendment process.

Bamidele said available public feedback indicated that many Nigerians had embraced the proposal because of its potential to improve security at the state and community levels.

He, however, expressed concern over what he described as attempts by some critics to politicise the initiative by portraying it as a tool that could be deployed by state governors against political opponents.

Some opponents of the proposal have also argued that Nigeria is not yet ripe for state policing and warned that the arrangement could revive the excesses associated with regional policing under the First Republic.

But the Senate Leader maintained that such concerns had been carefully addressed during the legislative process through extensive consultations and the incorporation of institutional safeguards.

According to him, the campaign for state police did not begin recently but emerged during the constitutional review process through memoranda submitted to the National Assembly.

He explained that because of the sensitive nature of the proposal, lawmakers embarked on extensive consultations with the executive arm of government, the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, the Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures and the leadership of the Nigeria Police Force before the bill was presented for legislative consideration.

Bamidele added that public hearings conducted across the country’s six geopolitical zones in July 2025 produced overwhelming support for the proposal, with participants endorsing the creation of state police as a practical response to rising insecurity.

He also disclosed that the Nigeria Police Force formally submitted a memorandum backing the initiative and provided recommendations that helped lawmakers design accountability and oversight mechanisms aimed at preventing abuse of state police by political office holders.

According to him, the support of the nation’s police leadership underscored the strategic importance of decentralising policing to tackle security threats more effectively at the grassroots.

Bamidele further stressed that the bill enjoyed bipartisan support in the National Assembly despite concerns in some political circles.

He said lawmakers from opposition parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC), New Democratic Congress (NDC) and Labour Party, joined members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in supporting the legislation.

He revealed that 84 of the 109 senators voted in favour of the bill during clause-by-clause consideration, representing about 77 per cent approval in the Senate.

The Senate Leader urged political actors to place national security above partisan interests, arguing that security remains a collective public good that transcends political, ethnic and religious differences.

He maintained that while constructive criticism remained essential in a democracy, opposition to initiatives aimed at strengthening national security should be accompanied by practical alternatives capable of addressing Nigeria’s security challenges.

Bamidele insisted that the proposed state police framework had become an urgent national necessity and should not be delayed because of political calculations or personal ambitions.

He expressed confidence that the constitutional amendment, if eventually adopted, would strengthen internal security architecture and improve protection of lives and property across the federation.