Opeyemi Bamidele: State Police Now a Reality, Not Rhetoric

• Confirms 30 states have met constitutional threshold for establishment

• Insists 10th NASS should be Judged by impact, not volume of laws

• Warns good laws alone cannot guarantee good governance

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, has declared that the establishment of state police in Nigeria is now a reality in the making, following the approval of the State Police Constitution Alteration Bill, 2026, by at least 30 state Houses of Assembly.

Bamidele, who is also Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution, said the constitutional threshold for the proposed reform had been met, paving the way for the National Assembly to complete the remaining legislative procedures and transmit the bill to President Bola Tinubu for assent.

He disclosed that the National Assembly had set December 2026 as its target for completing the outstanding stages of the process, including the collation of reports from state assemblies, passage of resolutions by both chambers and transmission of the bill to the President.

The Senate leader described the development as a historic breakthrough in Nigeria’s efforts to restructure its security architecture, insisting that state police had moved beyond political rhetoric and years of unsuccessful legislative attempts.

“We are pleased to inform our constituents across the federation that state police have moved from rhetoric to reality. We have already received formal reports from the State Houses of Assembly and, as of today, no fewer than 30 states have approved the State Police Constitution Alteration Bill, 2026,” he said.

Bamidele spoke on Thursday while delivering a lecture to participants of Senior Executive Course 48 at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Jos, Plateau State.

The lecture, titled “Improving the Efficiency and Effectiveness of Governance through Proactive Lawmaking,” examined the centrality of legislation to public governance and the need for the National Assembly to develop laws capable of addressing the country’s security, economic and institutional challenges.

Explaining the next steps in the state police constitutional amendment process, Bamidele said the National Assembly was required to consider and collate the reports transmitted by the state assemblies before passing a resolution by a simple majority of members in each chamber.

Bamidele said, “By the provision of Section 9(2) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which requires the concurrence of not less than two-thirds of all State Houses of Assembly, the constitutional requirement for the alteration has been duly met.

“This is a historic milestone in our collective quest to re-engineer our security architecture and make it more responsive, more local, and more effective.

“What happens next is procedural, but critical. The National Assembly is now constitutionally obligated to consider the reports transmitted by the State Houses of Assembly, collate those reports, and pass a resolution by simple majority of members in both chambers.

“Once this resolution is passed, the Alteration Bill will be transmitted to the President and Commander-in-Chief for assent.”

The Senate leader said the National Assembly was determined to complete the process within the stipulated timeframe, describing the proposed reform as a significant step towards addressing Nigeria’s persistent security challenges.

“We have set a clear timeline for ourselves. We intend to conclude all these legislative stages, consideration of reports, passage of resolution, and transmission for presidential assent, on or before December 2026,” he said.

Bamidele said the development represented a major departure from the years of debate and unsuccessful attempts to establish state police through constitutional amendments.

He said, “What this means is that state police is no longer a campaign promise or a subject of endless debate. It is now a constitutional reality.

“It means that the security of lives, private property and public assets occupies a prime place in the legislative agenda of the 10th National Assembly,” he stated.

He explained that decentralised policing would enable Nigeria to develop a security system better equipped to understand local circumstances and respond to the specific needs of communities across the federation.

According to him, state police would help law enforcement agencies understand local terrain, speak local languages and respond more effectively to security threats within their areas of operation.

Bamidele, however, stressed that the proposed reform was not intended to weaken the federal government or undermine national cohesion but to strengthen Nigeria’s federal structure through a more responsive and accountable policing system.

He said the objective was to establish state-led, community-based policing arrangements within clear constitutional safeguards, operational standards, oversight mechanisms and human rights protections.

“It is not about creating state armies, but about creating state-led, community-anchored policing within clear constitutional safeguards, operational standards, oversight mechanisms and human rights protections,” he said.

The Senate leader assured Nigerians that the National Assembly, under the leadership of Senate President Godswill Akpabio, would remain committed to completing the constitutional process.

He said, “The National Assembly, under the leadership of the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, remains committed to delivering on the establishment of state police.

“We will not falter until every Nigerian, whether in Kuru, in Iyin-Ekiti, in Gusau or in Yenagoa, can sleep with both eyes closed,” Bamidele said.

Beyond the proposed security reform, the Senate leader challenged the National Assembly to measure its legislative performance by the tangible benefits its interventions delivered to Nigerians rather than the number of bills passed into law.

He argued that the effectiveness of any legislature should be assessed by its capacity to improve citizens’ welfare, strengthen public institutions, promote economic development and address the country’s most pressing challenges.

Bamidele said the 10th National Assembly had deliberately prioritised strategic, people-centred legislation with direct implications for the welfare and development of Nigerians.

He listed the Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act, 2024; the Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act, 2024; the four Tax Reform Acts of 2025; and the National Social Investment Programme Act among the major legislative interventions of the current assembly.

Others, he said, included the Electoral Act, 2026; the Cybercrimes (Amendment) Act; the Investments and Securities Act, 2025; the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act, 2024; and the laws establishing regional development commissions.

He said work was also ongoing on the State Police Constitution Alteration Bill, which he described as one of the most consequential reforms being pursued by the National Assembly.

According to him, these legislative interventions demonstrated the importance of proactive lawmaking in tackling emerging challenges, correcting structural weaknesses and establishing legal frameworks to support sustainable development.

He said, “Proactive lawmaking offers Nigeria a pathway to more effective, efficient, accountable and development-oriented governance.

“By anticipating emerging challenges, addressing structural weaknesses, strengthening public institutions and creating legal frameworks for innovation and reform, the Legislature can move the country from a reactive to a strategic and preventive model of governance,” he added.

Bamidele added that proactive legislation had implications for virtually every sector of national life, including security, economic transformation, public financial management, electoral credibility, education, healthcare, technological innovation, environmental sustainability and intergovernmental relations.

He, however, cautioned that the passage of laws alone could not guarantee good governance, stressing that legislation must be supported by effective implementation, adequate funding, proper administration and consistent monitoring.

The Senate leader maintained that laws should not merely exist on paper but must address genuine public needs, reflect credible evidence and deliver measurable benefits to citizens.

He said, “Good governance requires good laws. But good laws alone do not guarantee good governance.

“We require laws that are relevant, evidence-based, implementable, adequately funded, properly administered, effectively monitored, periodically reviewed and ultimately measured by their impact on citizens,” he said.

On the relationship between NIPSS and the National Assembly, Bamidele called for stronger institutional collaboration to improve legislative foresight, strengthen policymaking and enhance the quality of governance.

He said the institute had demonstrated its capacity to bring together experienced Nigerians from the public sector, military, private sector, academia and other strategic institutions to examine national issues and develop policy recommendations.

“NIPSS has a special role to play in this transformation. The Institute has demonstrated capacity to bring together experienced Nigerians from the public sector, military, private sector, academia and other strategic institutions,” he said.

He noted that the institute’s Senior Executive Course covered policy, strategy, leadership, economics, international relations, security, science and technology, as well as peace and conflict studies, making it well-positioned to contribute to legislative research and strategic planning.

“I would, therefore, encourage stronger institutional collaboration between NIPSS and the National Assembly,” he added.

The lecture was attended by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Employment, Labour and Productivity, Senator Diket Plang; the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Tourism, Senator Pam Dachungyang; the Director-General of NIPSS, Professor Ayo Omotayo; and former President of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers, Mr. Adekunle Alonge.