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| Police Reform at The State House in Abuja |
Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, has announced that the long-awaited National Policing Bill is essentially complete and will be transmitted to the National Assembly within about two weeks. The disclosure, made Thursday after a steering committee meeting of the Presidential Working Group on Police Reform at the State House in Abuja, marks a significant step in one of the most ambitious security reforms of the Tinubu administration.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga quoted Gbajabiamila as saying the bill is “more or less ready” and that the group is “90 percent ready.” One additional meeting is planned “to cross the t’s and dot the i’s and make sure every area is covered.” Governors have raised “one or two observations,” after which the document should be finalized in roughly a week.
Gbajabiamila described the legislation as “the most consequential bill of the administration so far,” underscoring the weight the presidency attaches to restructuring Nigeria’s policing architecture.
Deliberations by the working group’s steering committee began on August 3, and the process has involved what he called “strenuous exercises” in recent weeks.
Why This Bill Matters: Nigeria’s Security Crisis in Context
Nigeria’s centralized police structure, inherited from the colonial era and largely unchanged since independence, has long been criticized as inadequate for a country of more than 220 million people facing complex, multi-layered security threats. From Boko Haram and ISWAP insurgency in the Northeast, to banditry and kidnapping in the Northwest, farmer-herder conflicts in the Middle Belt, oil theft and militancy in the Niger Delta, and rising urban crime in the South, the Nigeria Police Force has struggled with underfunding, poor training, equipment shortages, low morale, and allegations of human rights abuses.
Successive administrations have floated police reform. The 2018 Police Reform Act under President Muhammadu Buhari sought to modernize the force, improve welfare, and create community policing structures, but implementation lagged. State governors, particularly those in the South and Middle Belt, have repeatedly called for state police as a more responsive alternative, arguing that local knowledge and accountability would improve outcomes. Northern governors and some security analysts have historically been more cautious, citing risks of political abuse, ethnic bias, and fragmentation of national security.
The current push under Tinubu appears more comprehensive. The National Policing Bill is expected to sit alongside the ongoing sixth alteration to the 1999 Constitution, which seeks to enable state police. Gbajabiamila noted that only about six of the 36 states plus the Federal Capital Territory have so far passed the constitutional amendment. He expressed confidence in eventual passage, citing a “national consensus” among Nigerians on the need for change. “I see no reason why anyone will want to have a rethink on it,” he said.
Who Was in the Room and What It Signals
Thursday’s meeting brought together key political and security stakeholders. In attendance were AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and governor of Kwara State; Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State; Uba Sani of Kaduna State; and Inspector-General of Police Tunji Disu.
The presence of the NGF chairman and governors from both the North and South suggests an effort to build cross-regional buy-in—an essential ingredient given that constitutional amendments require the approval of at least 24 state houses of assembly.
This inclusive approach is noteworthy. Previous reform efforts often stalled amid mutual suspicion between federal authorities and state governments. By involving governors early and addressing their observations, the working group appears to be trying to avoid the political landmines that sank earlier initiatives.
Analysis: Opportunities and Risks Ahead
If successfully enacted and implemented, the National Policing Bill could represent a structural shift. Potential benefits include clearer delineation of federal and state policing roles, improved intelligence sharing, better-resourced local response units, and mechanisms for greater civilian oversight. A hybrid model—retaining a strong federal police for inter-state and specialized crimes while empowering state forces for day-to-day law enforcement—could address both national cohesion and local effectiveness.
Yet significant challenges remain. Funding will be critical: many states already struggle to meet basic obligations. Questions persist about recruitment standards, training curricula, operational control, and safeguards against governors turning state police into personal militias. The bill will also need to navigate Nigeria’s complex federalism, where resource control, ethnicity, and political competition frequently complicate security policy.
Human rights groups and civil society organizations will likely scrutinize the final text closely. Past police reforms have been undermined by weak accountability mechanisms. Any credible new framework must strengthen internal discipline, external oversight (possibly through an independent police complaints body), and community engagement.
The Road to the National Assembly
Gbajabiamila’s timeline—transmission within two weeks after one final meeting—suggests the technical work is largely complete. Once the bill reaches the National Assembly, lawmakers will face intense lobbying from governors, security experts, traditional rulers, and advocacy groups. Public hearings could provide an opportunity to refine provisions on funding formulas, command structures, and inter-agency coordination.
The constitutional amendment process runs on a parallel track. The slow pace of state-level approvals (only about six so far) indicates that political consensus is still incomplete. Gbajabiamila’s optimism may reflect private assurances from governors, but translating verbal support into legislative action will test the administration’s influence.
Broader Implications for Tinubu’s Agenda
Security remains one of the most visible and politically sensitive issues for the Tinubu presidency.
Tangible progress on policing reform would allow the government to claim a major policy win and differentiate itself from predecessors who talked about reform without delivering structural change.
Conversely, delay or dilution of the bill could reinforce public skepticism about the capacity of the federal government to tackle insecurity.
For ordinary Nigerians, the stakes are concrete.
Communities tired of delayed police responses, under-equipped stations, and perceived federal detachment from local realities are watching closely. Whether the National Policing Bill ultimately delivers safer streets, better intelligence, and accountable officers will depend not only on the quality of the legislation but on the political will and resources devoted to implementation in the years ahead.
As the working group prepares its final refinements, the coming weeks will reveal how far Nigeria is willing to go in redesigning one of its most critical institutions. The bill’s arrival in the National Assembly will mark the start of a new, and likely contentious, chapter in the country’s long struggle to build a police force fit for the 21st century.
Samuel O. Sulaimon is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Naijapiz. He covers News, Sports, Finance, Faiths, Education, Politics and Technology.
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