The Chief of Staff to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, has disclosed that significant progress has been made toward the establishment of state police, with constitutional amendments expected soon.
Gbajabiamila made this known on Thursday while briefing State House correspondents after a high-level consultative meeting on state police held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
According to him, deliberations on the proposed state policing framework began months ago following a directive from President Tinubu, and discussions have now advanced considerably.
“We started deliberations in the last three or four months on how to go about the establishment of state police as directed by Mr President,” he said.
“Establishing state police is not something that you do with the snap of the fingers. There is a lot involved in terms of constitution and legalities, and thank God we have now gained a lot of traction.”
He explained that the current focus is on the constitutional amendment required to create state police, while the enabling legislation would follow afterward.
“Hopefully, the amendment will come shortly, and the details of the amendment will come after that,” Gbajabiamila added.
The Chief of Staff noted that national conversations have moved beyond whether state police should exist, stressing that attention is now centred on creating the appropriate legal and institutional framework for its operation.
The meeting was attended by key government and security officials, including Jibrin Barau, Benjamin Kalu, Attorney-General and Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi, and Inspector-General of Police Tunji Disu.
The renewed push for state police comes amid growing insecurity across the country, including recent kidnappings and attacks on schools in Oyo and Borno states.
The Federal Government said the consultations are part of broader efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s internal security architecture, improve grassroots intelligence gathering, and enhance the ability of state governments to respond quickly to emerging security threats.
