State governors have outlined a comprehensive framework seeking enhanced constitutional authority over security operations and guaranteed funding mechanisms for proposed State Police Services. The blueprint emerged from a high-level strategic meeting convened in Abuja by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) Secretariat, which brought together state Attorneys-General, legal experts, and senior security officials to harmonize decentralization proposals.
The initiative marks a significant development in ongoing efforts to restructure Nigeria's security architecture. By creating a decentralized system, proponents aim to balance local security requirements with constitutional safeguards and national unity, addressing severe security challenges—such as banditry, terrorism, kidnapping, and communal conflicts—that have overwhelmed the current centrally managed system.
Core Proposals and Jurisdictional Boundaries
The proposed model relies on cooperative federalism, establishing distinct boundaries between federal and state law enforcement jurisdictions:
-
Federal Police Jurisdiction: Retains exclusive responsibility for crimes of national significance, including treason, terrorism, narcotics trafficking, and interstate criminal activities.
-
State Police Jurisdiction: Empowers state forces to prevent, investigate, and prosecute offenses committed under state laws and within their local borders.
-
Operational Control: Grants governors clear constitutional recognition to coordinate local security operations while maintaining strict safeguards for professional independence and accountability.
-
Asset Restructuring: Includes mechanisms to transfer or reconfigure existing federal policing assets, commands, and infrastructure to support the new state formations.
Funding, Governance, and Accountability
Recognizing long-standing concerns regarding political manipulation and financial sustainability, the framework emphasizes institutional oversight and predictable financing:
| Key Area | Proposed Mechanism |
| Financing Structure | Guaranteed constitutional funding alongside complementary options, such as transitional federal support and State Security Trust Funds involving private sector partnerships. |
| National Oversight | Inclusion of a rotating representative of State Attorneys-General on the National Police Council to enhance state input in national policy. |
| Operational Health | Non-discretionary funding allocations dedicated strictly to equipment, personnel training, and long-term operational readiness. |
Personnel Transition and Implementation Flexibility
The framework addresses human resources by allowing serving members of the Nigeria Police Force to voluntarily transfer to state services. Transitioning personnel would retain their rank, seniority, and pension benefits, though these transfers would be bound by specific timelines to ensure organized workforce planning.
Furthermore, the blueprint offers flexibility for states lacking immediate financial or administrative capacity to launch independent police forces. In such instances, the federal government would continue providing policing coverage through existing structures until the state achieves full readiness.
Legislative Progress
This proposal surfaces at a critical juncture in the constitutional amendment process. The House of Representatives recently passed the state police bill, and the Senate has scaled the legislation through its second reading, referring it to the Committee on Constitution Review. If fully ratified and enacted, these changes will introduce a dual policing structure, representing the most profound security reform since Nigeria's return to democratic governance in 1999.