Tinubu names Gbajabiamila, AGF, others in state police implementation committee

President Bola Tinubu has initiated the process for establishing state police in Nigeria by inaugurating a Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill. The committee's primary task is to prepare the legal framework necessary for the implementation of state police forces across the country.

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The Constitution Amendment Bill establishes in the framework for dual policing, but it does not operationalise it. That work is left to the National Policing Bill.

Represented by his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, President Tinubu launched the working group at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. This move follows the Senate's approval of a constitutional alteration bill that proposes a dual policing system, comprising a Federal Police Service and 36 State Police Services. Tinubu emphasized that while the constitutional amendment lays the groundwork, the National Policing Bill is crucial for operationalizing the system.

The proposed National Policing Bill aims to address key aspects such as policing standards, the readiness of states to manage their own police forces, mechanisms for federal-state coordination, accountability measures, safeguards for human rights, and the transition of personnel. "The proposed National Policing Bill will include provisions on minimum policing standards, state readiness certification, federal-state coordination, accountability, human rights safeguards and fiscal conditions," the President stated.

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The proposed National Policing Bill will include provisions on minimum policing standards, state readiness certification, federal-state coordination, accountability, human rights safeguards and fiscal conditions.

The committee, chaired by Gbajabiamila, includes prominent figures such as the Attorney-General of the Federation, the National Security Adviser, and the Inspector-General of Police. The President of the Nigerian Bar Association, the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, and a representative from the NGF Committee on State Police are also members. The group is tasked with producing a draft bill ready for transmission to the National Assembly, alongside recommendations for other legal instruments needed for a smooth transition to the dual policing system.

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The Working Group has been constituted to produce a technically robust, implementation-ready draft National Policing Bill for transmission to the National Assembly.

Attorney-General Lateef Fagbemi highlighted the initiative's timeliness, given Nigeria's current security challenges. He urged state governors to expedite the ratification of the constitutional amendment, stressing that the implementation of state police is a shared responsibility. The President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Mr. Afam Osigwe, also commented on the importance of the initiative.

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There is no denying the fact that we are in a critical moment security-wise, and all hands must be on deck.