By Joy Yesufu
The House of Representatives on Thursday approved a constitutional amendment bill seeking to establish state police, marking a significant step towards the decentralisation of Nigeria’s policing system amid growing concerns over insecurity across the country.
The proposal secured overwhelming support during plenary presided over by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, with 289 lawmakers voting in favour of the bill, one member voting against it, while the Speaker abstained from voting.
The vote followed increasing calls for security sector reforms in response to rising cases of killings, kidnappings, banditry, and other violent crimes across several parts of the country.
Proceedings, however, witnessed brief controversy when a member representing Jaba/Zangon Kataf Federal Constituency of Kaduna State, Hon. Bashir Zubairu, raised a point of order, arguing that lawmakers had only received copies of the report on the proposed amendment earlier in the day.
According to him, members had insufficient time to study the document before voting on a matter of national importance.
“Mr Speaker, this document was only made available to lawmakers today, and many of us are yet to go through it. We cannot do justice to such an important proposal without adequate scrutiny,” he argued.
However, the Speaker ruled him out of order and directed proceedings to continue.
As deliberations progressed, occasional calls of “Point of Order” were heard from some lawmakers, but the presiding officer proceeded with the consideration of the bill.
Before the voting commenced, Abbas informed members that the electronic voting system was not functioning, necessitating a manual voting process based on attendance records.
At the conclusion of the exercise, 289 lawmakers voted in support of the bill, while only one member opposed it.
The approval represents one of the most significant constitutional reform efforts aimed at addressing Nigeria’s longstanding security challenges.
Proponents of state policing argue that decentralising law enforcement would improve intelligence gathering, enhance community policing, and enable faster responses to security threats at the sub-national level.
Supporters also contend that state governments, being closer to local communities, are better positioned to address peculiar security challenges within their jurisdictions.
However, critics have expressed concerns about the potential abuse of state police by governors and the implications for political neutrality and human rights.
The bill will proceed through the remaining stages of the constitutional amendment process in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution.
