The Kaduna State House of Assembly has approved a proposed amendment to Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution aimed at establishing state police services, in a development that could reshape security operations across the country.
The approval was granted during Thursday’s plenary session, presided over by Deputy Speaker Henry Magaji Dajuma, following the transmission of the proposed amendment by the National Assembly for consideration by state legislatures.
Chairman of the House Committee on Information, Henry Marah, said the proposed state police system would strengthen community-based security, improve the protection of lives and property, and create employment opportunities for young people.
Marah explained that the current policing structure limits state governments’ ability to hold police authorities directly accountable for security challenges within their jurisdictions.
According to him, establishing state police would provide a legal framework for community-based policing initiatives and improve responses to banditry, kidnapping and other criminal activities.
He added that the Assembly would introduce appropriate legislation to regulate the operations and welfare of personnel under the proposed system once the initiative takes effect.
On funding, the lawmaker assured residents that the state government was prepared to prioritise financing for the proposed police service, even if it required reducing expenditure on other projects.
Marah also expressed hope that improved security would enable farmers to return to their farms and harvest their produce without fear of being kidnapped.
The approval forms part of the ongoing constitutional amendment process to establish state police services alongside the existing national policing structure.
For the proposal to become part of the Constitution, it must secure the approval of at least 24 of Nigeria’s 36 state Houses of Assembly, in addition to meeting the other constitutional requirements.
