​A decisive legislative push to establish state police reached a historic milestone on Thursday as a rapid wave of endorsements brought the total number of approving State Houses of Assembly to 24, successfully meeting the two-thirds constitutional threshold required to alter the 1999 Constitution.
​The momentum accelerated following a swift series of approvals that commenced on Wednesday, during which no fewer than 13 state assemblies formally ratified proposed constitutional amendments. The legislation aims to grant sub-national governments dedicated policing powers to aggressively tackle widespread insecurity, terrorism, and banditry across Nigeria.
​Under Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, any proposed constitutional alteration requires formal approval by at least two-thirds, or 24 out of the 36 state assemblies, before advancing for final federal collation and presidential assent.
​Geographically, the support spans both northern and southern regions. The 14 southern states endorsing the bill include Abia, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Enugu, Imo, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Rivers, and Ekiti.
They are joined by 10 northern states: Adamawa, Benue, Kaduna, Kebbi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Plateau, Taraba, Yobe, and Zamfara. Meanwhile, deliberations remain pending in 12 states, comprising Lagos, Ondo, and Ebonyi in the south, alongside Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Kogi, Niger, and Sokoto in the north.
​In Umuahia, during a plenary session held on Thursday morning at the House of Assembly Complex, Speaker Austin Nmeregini confirmed to reporters that the Abia State House of Assembly voted unanimously in favor of the bill. He emphasized that establishing state police is vital to restoring local security and ensuring that farmers across rural communities can return to their fields without fear of abduction.
​A similar consensus unfolded at the Kaduna State House of Assembly Chambers, where lawmakers unanimously passed amendments across 15 sections of the 1999 Constitution during Thursday’s plenary session to clear the legal framework for sub-national policing.
​This builds on momentum generated a day earlier in Enugu State, where the House of Assembly convened at its complex on Wednesday. Speaker Uche Ugwu characterized the resolution as a direct reflection of the public’s demands, stating that decentralized policing remains the most effective antidote to regional security challenges.
​In states where voting has not yet concluded, officials assured that legislative processes remain active. In Lokoja, the Kogi State House of Assembly Deputy Clerk of Administration, Mr. Aka Bayo, clarified that proceedings were temporarily paused after lawmakers adjourned to attend an international conference in Rwanda, adding that ratification procedures will resume immediately upon their return.
Similarly, the Deputy Speaker of the Gombe State House of Assembly noted that while formal passage is pending in Gombe, deliberations are ongoing, and the assembly’s stance will be transmitted once finalized.
​The sweeping legislative endorsement represents a major milestone for the bill, which was initially passed by the Senate on June 24 and subsequently approved by the House of Representatives before being refined by a Presidential Working Group chaired by Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila.
With the constitutional threshold now satisfied, certified inputs from the state assemblies will be transmitted back to the National Assembly for formal collation before submission to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for final presidential assent.
