Deep Dive: President Tinubu Urges Senators to Amend Constitution for State Police in Nigeria

President Tinubu, as head of Nigeria's executive branch, directed the Senate, part of the National Assembly, to pursue a constitutional amendment for establishing State Police. This action falls under his authority to propose policy priorities to the legislature, though amendments require passage by two-thirds of both houses of the National Assembly and approval by at least 24 state assemblies, per Nigeria's 1999 Constitution (as amended). No direct precedent exists for state police, as the current centralized Nigeria Police Force (NPF) structure stems from the 1979 Constitution's unitary policing model, retained post-1999 to maintain national cohesion amid ethnic and regional tensions. The institutional context involves the exclusive legislative list in the Third Schedule of the Constitution, which assigns policing solely to the federal government, limiting states to vigilante groups or community watch initiatives. Tinubu's call represents a political action by the executive urging legislative change, building on ongoing debates since the Fourth Republic began, where governors have repeatedly advocated decentralization due to federal police inefficiencies in handling local crimes like banditry and kidnappings. Stakeholders include state governors seeking autonomy, federal security agencies concerned about fragmentation, and civil society groups weighing risks of politicized state forces against benefits of localized response. Concrete consequences hinge on amendment success: states would gain authority to create, fund, and command police units, altering governance by devolving power from Abuja to 36 state capitals. This could streamline responses to jurisdiction-specific threats but introduces oversight challenges to prevent abuse. The outlook depends on Senate leadership's alignment with the executive and state houses' ratification, potentially reshaping federalism if enacted.