The committee on the framework for the establishment of state police set up by the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, has recommended the deployment of at least 60 per cent of the Nigerian Police officers to the state police services.
But security experts express mixed reactions over the recommendation and other proposals in the report.
Nigeria, with an estimated 200 million population, currently has a police strength of about 370,000 officers, representing one officer to 600 citizens – a far cry from the United Nations recommended ratio of one police officer to 450 citizens. This implies that about 222,000 police officers will be moved to the state police if the committee’s recommendation is adopted.
The seven-man steering committee set up by the Force had, on Thursday, submitted its report to the senate committee on the review of the 1999 Constitution, chaired by Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin.
The chairman of the committee, Professor Olu Ogunsakin, who submitted the 75-page document titled “A comprehensive framework for the establishment, governance and coordination of federal and state police,” on behalf of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Tunji Disu, said it contains professional insights and recommendations from the police on the proposed creation of state police.
Police sources privy to the content of the framework told Daily Trust that some of the key recommendations in the report include a two-tier policing architecture, which proposes the creation of a Federal Police Service (FPS) and 37 State Police Services (SPS) across the states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.
The FPS, which will replace the Nigeria Police Force subject to constitutional amendment, will focus on national security, terrorism, interstate crime and federal law enforcement, while the SPS handles local criminal offences, domestic violence, homicide, armed robbery and community policing “as their primary mandate.”
Notably, the framework proposed that the FPS will retain about 40 per cent of officers for national roles, while the remaining 60 per cent will be redeployed to state police services.
“There will be a Voluntary Transfer Programme (VTP) which allows federal police officers to transfer to their home-state or preferred State Police Service. Officers can opt to transfer to their home-state or preferred State Police Service. The committee recommended a three-month salary Transfer Facilitation Grant, a transition training programme, and a guaranteed Pension Continuity certificate,” a source said.
The committee also recommended the establishment of a National Police Standards Board (NPSB), an independent 13-member federal board that will set the minimum national standards covering recruitment, training, conduct, accountability and funding across all police services. The board will also monitor and enforce the standards and publish annual compliance ratings for every state service.
“The report places community policing at the philosophical and operational heart of the state police model, recognising that the erosion of trust between Nigerian communities and the police is not merely a reputational problem but a fundamental operational liability. Every State Police Service must maintain a dedicated Department of Community Policing, with Community Policing Forums established at every Local Government Area — comprising police officers, traditional leaders, women’s groups, youth organisations, and religious leaders. Community Liaison Officers will be assigned to specific communities, expected to speak local languages, and evaluated partly on community forum ratings,” another source said.
A brief of the document cited by our correspondent noted that the establishment of state police requires amendments to Section 214 of the 1999 Constitution and the Second Schedule to allow SPS co-exist with the FPS and move the former from the Exclusive List to the Concurrent Legislative List.
“A new Section 214A would constitutionally establish a National Police Standards Board,” the report added.
Addressing the widespread concern that state police could be weaponised by governors, the report recommended constitutional prohibitions on partisan deployment, constitution of independent State Police Service Commissions insulated from executive interference, criminal sanctions for officials who issue unlawful orders, and a Federal High Court fast-track review of politically-motivated deployments.
“Oversight is deliberately layered to prevent capture by any single political interest, encompassing: State Police Service Commissions (independent appointment and discipline), State Police Ombudsmen (independent complaints handling), NPSB inspections, State House of Assembly standing committees, mandatory Body-Worn Cameras with secure cloud storage, and public performance dashboards showing useof-force statistics and community satisfaction data,” it stated.
The prescribed funding framework dedicated through a constitutionally-backed State Police Fund (SPF) that will receive a 3% statutory federal allocation from the Federation Account distributed by population, land area, security need and fiscal capacity, as well as a minimum of 15% contribution from each state government’s security budget.
The document further recommended a 60-month phased implementation of the state police, with the first 12 months scheduled for the constitutional and legal foundations.
“Establishment of state services and VTP launches (Months 13–24), initial operations and FPS withdrawal from local policing (Months 25–42), and full consolidation with an independent evaluation and legislative review (Months 43–60),” it added.
Security experts differ on report
A security consultant and former Director of the Department of State Services, Mike Ejiofor, faulted the proposed integration of 60% of the Nigeria Police operatives into the state police, insisting that the latter should have its own newly recruited men to be trained by the federal police.
“They should operate independently instead of sharing 60%. Besides, some officers posted to the state police will not like it. What I can partly agree with is if the Nigeria Police will share 60% of its workforce to their states of origin, but they should be operating independently of the federal police,” he said.
The security expert also punctured the exemption of state police from fighting terrorism and banditry, saying with the level of current insecurity across the country, “they can check banditry and every crime.”
“But when it comes to prosecution, if they arrest bandits or terrorists, the suspects should be handed over to the federal police for prosecution. They can prosecute minor offences such as burglary. However, the federal government is foot-dragging on the issue of state police and there are a lot of bureaucracies and protocols. I expected that by now the state police would have taken off considering the President’s body language,” he added.
On the proposed National Police Standards Board, Ejiofor said it amounts to tying the state police to the apron strings of the federal police. “We are operating federalism, so why does the board have to set standards for them?” He queried.
However, a managing partner at the security, peace and development institute, Nextier SPD, Dr. Ndu Nwokolo, said the NPSB could enhance public confidence on existing concerns around political abuse of the state policing system.
@Daily Trust
