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Kingsley Joshua
ABUJA : Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele has called for constitutional guarantees to protect the proposed state police system from political interference, warning that governors, powerful business interests, criminal networks and entrenched cabals could manipulate state-controlled law enforcement agencies if their financial independence is not secured.
The remarks come as the National Assembly intensifies efforts to amend Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution to permit the establishment of state police services, one of the most consequential security reforms under consideration in recent years.
In a statement issued Wednesday, Bamidele, who also serves as Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution, acknowledged growing public concerns about the proposed reform and said lawmakers were working to build safeguards that would prevent abuses associated with decentralized policing.
The Senate leader said many of the reservations expressed by stakeholders were justified and rooted in Nigeria’s historical experience under the First Republic, when regional governments exercised control over police formations established under the 1960 and 1963 Constitutions.
“These concerns are well founded and obviously cannot be swept under the carpet considering their weight and enormity,” Bamidele said.
To address those fears, he disclosed that the National Assembly is developing a framework that would emphasize institutional independence, professional discipline and fiscal autonomy for state police services.
Central to the proposal, according to Bamidele, is a constitutional provision that would make funding for state police a first-line charge, similar to the financial arrangement that currently guarantees the independence of the judiciary.
Under such a system, funds allocated to state police would be automatically protected and released, reducing the possibility of governors using financial leverage to influence operational decisions or punish officers who refuse to carry out politically motivated directives.
“The Commissioner of Police and State Police Service Commission must have a guaranteed source of funds provided for in the Constitution in a way that the police chief will not be subject to the whims and caprices of a state governor,” he said.
Bamidele argued that allowing governors unfettered control over police funding could undermine the effectiveness and credibility of the proposed security architecture.
“If a state police service is not responding well to the directives of a governor, he may choose not to fund it. We must prevent such a situation,” he said.
The Senate leader revealed that lawmakers are considering constitutional provisions that would earmark a specific percentage of state budgets for police operations, ensuring predictable funding and reducing dependence on executive discretion.
The proposal comes amid a broader national debate over the creation of state police as Nigeria grapples with persistent security challenges, including banditry, kidnapping, terrorism and communal violence.
While supporters argue that state police would improve local intelligence gathering and rapid response capabilities, critics have warned that governors could deploy such forces against political opponents or use them to suppress dissent.
Bamidele, however, cautioned that political interference is not the only danger facing a poorly structured state police system.
“Those who expressed concerns only talked of political abuse. But it is more than political abuse,” he said.
He warned that inadequate funding could expose state police agencies to influence from wealthy individuals, organized criminal groups and other powerful interests capable of exploiting financial vulnerabilities.
“Business class can also abuse it. Some other organisations, even criminals or cabals, can abuse state police service because it is a question of ‘he who pays the piper dictates the tune,’” he said.
According to Bamidele, ensuring financial autonomy is essential if state police services are to perform their constitutional responsibilities effectively and maintain public trust.
He stressed that the objective of the ongoing constitutional review is to transfer policing powers from the Exclusive Legislative List, where authority currently resides solely with the federal government, to the Concurrent Legislative List, enabling state governments to establish and manage their own police institutions under constitutional safeguards.
Despite concerns surrounding the proposal, Bamidele expressed confidence that lawmakers would deliver a framework that balances local security needs with democratic accountability.
He assured Nigerians that the National Assembly remains committed to addressing all concerns raised by stakeholders and creating a policing structure that is transparent, professionally managed and accountable to the public.
As debates over the future of state policing continue, the issue has emerged as one of the defining questions in Nigeria’s constitutional reform process, with supporters and critics alike closely watching how lawmakers navigate the challenge of expanding security authority while safeguarding democratic institutions.
