The House of Representatives has passed the State Police Bill, marking a significant step toward the decentralisation of Nigeria’s policing architecture and a major reform in the country’s security framework.
The resolution was adopted during Thursday’s plenary session presided over by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, following an overwhelming vote by lawmakers in support of the proposal.
The House had dedicated the session to considering and voting on the State Police Bill in response to rising cases of killings, kidnappings, and banditry across the country.
Proceedings, however, were not without controversy. Shortly after the commencement of the session, a lawmaker representing Kaduna State, Bashir Zubairu, raised a point of order, expressing concerns that members had only received the document prepared by the House Committee on Constitution Review earlier in the day.
According to Zubairu, lawmakers had insufficient time to study the contents of the proposal before voting on such a critical constitutional matter.
“Mr Speaker, this document was only made available to lawmakers in the chambers, and we are yet to go through it. We cannot do justice to it because we have not gone through it,” he said.
The objection was, however, dismissed by the Speaker, who ruled the lawmaker out of order and allowed proceedings to continue.
As Abbas guided members through the bill’s provisions, several lawmakers were heard raising points of order, but the presiding officer proceeded with the process.
Before voting commenced, the Speaker informed the House that the electronic voting system was not functioning and announced that the exercise would instead be conducted based on attendance records.
At the conclusion of the vote, 289 of the 290 lawmakers present voted in favour of the State Police Bill, while one member voted against it. Speaker Abbas abstained from voting.
The passage of the bill represents a major milestone in Nigeria’s ongoing debate over state policing, with proponents arguing that decentralised law enforcement will improve local security responses and strengthen efforts to combat crime and insecurity nationwide.
The bill is expected to advance in the legislative process as stakeholders continue discussions on the structure, powers, and oversight mechanisms of state police formations.
