ABUJA, NIGERIA — The Nigerian Senate has given four outstanding State Houses of Assembly until November 17, 2026, to submit their reports on the proposed establishment of state police, as the National Assembly prepares to resume legislative activities and advance the constitutional amendment process.
Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, disclosed the deadline on Sunday, saying 32 of the country’s 36 state assemblies had approved the State Police (Constitution Alteration) Bill, 2026. The remaining four are expected to communicate their decisions before or by the time the National Assembly reconvenes on Tuesday.
Bamidele made the disclosure in a statement issued in Abuja after receiving The Sun Senator of the Year Award. He described the progress recorded on the proposed reform as a significant development in Nigeria’s efforts to restructure its policing system.
According to him, the 32 approvals have already surpassed the constitutional requirement of support from at least two-thirds of the 36 state assemblies. That threshold represents 24 states and is a critical requirement for altering the 1999 Constitution.
The Senate Leader said the outstanding reports would be expected by November 17, but maintained that the National Assembly should not allow the absence of responses from the four states to prevent further action on the proposal.
He said the legislature had a responsibility to move the constitutional amendment forward and transmit it to President Bola Tinubu for assent, describing the proposed reform as an important step towards addressing the country’s security challenges.
The latest development follows an earlier Senate decision, announced on November 4, which gave six state assemblies until November 15 to communicate their positions on the proposed legislation. At the time, 30 assemblies had reportedly approved the amendment, while six were yet to submit their resolutions.
The number of approvals has since increased to 32, leaving four outstanding. The latest reports, however, did not identify the four assemblies that are yet to submit their reports.
The proposed reform seeks to amend the Constitution to permit individual states to establish and operate their own police services alongside the existing Nigeria Police Force. It represents a major shift from Nigeria’s longstanding centralised policing structure, under which the federal government maintains control of the country’s primary police institution.
Supporters of state police argue that allowing states to establish their own forces could improve security responses by bringing law enforcement closer to communities and enabling officers to develop a better understanding of local threats. They believe state-based policing could strengthen intelligence gathering, improve response times and allow security strategies to reflect the different challenges confronting individual states.
However, the proposal also raises important questions about the structure and accountability of the proposed forces. Concerns surrounding political interference, funding, recruitment, professional training, human rights protection and operational independence are likely to remain central to discussions about implementation.
The debate is particularly significant in a country facing multiple security threats, including kidnapping, banditry, terrorism, communal violence and organised criminal activities. These challenges have intensified calls for a more decentralised security arrangement, with advocates arguing that a single national policing structure may struggle to respond effectively to the different circumstances across Nigeria’s 36 states.
Under the constitutional amendment procedure, approval by at least two-thirds of the state assemblies is required before the process can advance to presidential assent. The 32 approvals announced by Bamidele therefore indicate that the proposal has crossed the required numerical threshold.
The immediate focus is now on receiving the outstanding reports and completing the necessary legislative procedures. Bamidele’s comments suggest that the National Assembly intends to proceed with the process even if the four remaining assemblies do not submit their positions by the stated deadline.
If the constitutional amendment eventually receives all required approvals and presidential assent, it would create the legal foundation for states to establish their own police services. However, the practical operation of such forces would depend on the detailed constitutional provisions and safeguards governing their establishment.
With the National Assembly expected to reconvene on November 17, attention will turn to whether the remaining state assemblies submit their reports and how quickly lawmakers complete the next stage of the proposed reform.
