The Nigerian public maybe closer to a State Police structure than they think.
Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele has said the National Assembly will this week pass the constitutional amendment bill providing for the establishment of state police, saying the reform has become imperative in view of the country’s persistent security challenges.
Bamidele, who represents Ekiti Central Senatorial District, disclosed this in an interview, noting that extensive consultations involving the National Assembly, the Presidency, the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation, the Inspector-General of Police and other stakeholders had paved the way for the legislation.
According to him, lawmakers have resolved to isolate the state police proposal from the broader constitutional review process to fast-track its passage and transmission to the 36 state Houses of Assembly, whose approval by a two-thirds majority is required before presidential assent.
The Senate leader said President Bola Tinubu and a majority of state governors were in support of the initiative, expressing confidence that the process would be activated within the week. He stressed that the National Assembly was responding to the widespread demand by Nigerians for a decentralised policing structure.
Bamidele also defended the Senate’s decision to reject calls for a probe into military spending, arguing that opening a public investigation into defence expenditures in the middle of the country’s fight against terrorism and banditry would undermine ongoing operations and amount to a mismanagement of a sensitive national security issue.
He maintained that the military remained subject to legislative oversight through the relevant Senate committees, adding that significant progress was being made in the war against insurgency despite the recent spike in attacks, which he attributed to the desperation of terrorist groups facing mounting pressure from security forces.
Responding to criticisms that the 10th National Assembly had become a rubber stamp for the executive, Bamidele insisted that lawmakers had merely chosen to resolve disagreements with the Presidency through consultations rather than public confrontations.
He said such collaboration was in the national interest and should be viewed as statesmanship rather than weakness.
