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The Senate has given the six state Houses of Assembly yet to approve the proposed establishment of state police until November 15 to communicate their positions.
It warned that any assembly that fails to respond by the deadline would be regarded as having withheld its approval.
The decision followed an update by the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, during plenary on Wednesday that 30 of the 36 state Houses of Assembly had approved the proposed constitutional amendment.
The approvals have exceeded the constitutionally required two-thirds majority of 24 states. However, Senate President Godswill Akpabio appealed for more time to allow the remaining six states to make their positions known.
Akpabio proposed November 15 as the final deadline, and the Senate unanimously supported his request.
“They should be given more time. Let’s give them till November 15 to respond,” he said.
Earlier, Bamidele read out the names of the 30 state Houses of Assembly that had approved the bill.
They are Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Borno, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nasarawa, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe and Zamfara.
Bamidele said the number of approvals had surpassed the constitutional requirement of two-thirds of the 36 state assemblies, representing 24 states.
The Senate Leader explained that the amendment process involved three stages: passage by the National Assembly, approval by at least two-thirds of the state Houses of Assembly and presidential assent.
He said, “Passage of the bill was meant to be done by the National Assembly, which was done, and approval is meant to be done by at least two-thirds of the 36 state houses of assembly in the country, and assent is to be given by the President to complete this process.”
The proposed amendment seeks to alter the 1999 Constitution to allow the establishment of state police services.
The reform is designed to decentralise policing by allowing state governments to establish and manage their own police structures.
It is also expected to address longstanding concerns about the limits of the centralised policing system, particularly in tackling insecurity across the country’s diverse communities.
Speaking on the bill on Wednesday, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, expressed excitement over the development, describing it as a major step towards establishing state police in Nigeria.
Kalu said the Clerk to the National Assembly was expected to transmit the bill to President Bola Tinubu for assent.
“The State Police Bill has received the backing of state houses of assembly. Later today, the Clerk to the National Assembly will transmit it to the President for assent,” he said.
