Insecurity: Reps to vote on state police Thursday

The House of Representatives has assured Nigerians that it is intensifying efforts to address worsening security challenges by prioritising the establishment of state police in its ongoing constitutional amendment process.

Deputy Speaker and Chairman of the House Committee on Constitution Review, Benjamin Kalu, disclosed this on Wednesday during a briefing to journalists shortly after plenary.

He said the lower chamber had resolved to give priority to the state police proposal over other constitutional amendment bills currently under consideration.

According to him, the long-debated state police initiative would secure legislative approval and pave the way for improved security across the country.

Kalu argued that while the executive arm bears primary responsibility for safeguarding lives and property, the legislature must also play its constitutional role by deploying legislative tools to tackle the nation’s security crisis.

He further noted that the House had consistently engaged security agencies, service chiefs, the Ministry of Finance, the Budget Office and other relevant institutions through its oversight functions.

However, the Deputy Speaker stressed that legislative intervention had become necessary to address structural deficiencies in Nigeria’s policing architecture.

According to him, the current constitutional framework, particularly provisions relating to the centralised policing system, has proven inadequate in responding effectively to emerging security threats across the federation.

Kalu said there is now broad national consensus in support of state police, adding that key stakeholders, including the Inspector-General of Police, governors and the executive arm of government, have expressed support for the proposal.

He disclosed that members of the House Committee on Constitution Review had worked extensively on amendments aimed at creating a constitutional framework for state policing.

“Hope is coming. The hope of having better response time to incidents of crime is here,” the House said, assuring Nigerians that the House was determined to advance the proposal despite reports suggesting attempts to frustrate the initiative.

He maintained that the Parliament remained committed to strengthening Nigeria’s security architecture through constitutional reforms.

The House leadership also expressed confidence that once the proposed amendment is passed by the National Assembly, it would receive the backing of state governors and state Houses of Assembly, thereby accelerating its transmission to President Bola Tinubu for assent.

Kalu further appealed to all members of the House currently engaged in oversight activities across the country to return to Abuja for the constitutional amendment vote.

Describing the nation’s security situation as an emergency, they urged lawmakers to suspend other engagements and participate in the session to demonstrate the legislature’s commitment to tackling insecurity.

“We want all our members to be in the House so that we can show our constituents that we are in support of state police and that security remains a priority on our agenda,” they said.

The renewed push for state police comes amid growing calls from stakeholders for the decentralisation of Nigeria’s policing system as a means of improving intelligence gathering, response time and overall security management at the grassroots level.