The National Assembly has transmitted the constitutional amendment bill seeking to establish state police in Nigeria to President Bola Tinubu for presidential assent after receiving approval from 30 out of the 36 State Houses of Assembly.
The development was announced during Wednesday’s plenary sitting after Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, read a notice from the Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamoru Ogunlana, confirming that the proposed amendment had secured the required support from state legislatures.
According to the notice, the National Assembly had received approval from 29 state assemblies as of the close of business on Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Following the development, the leadership of the National Assembly directed the Clerk to forward the bill to President Tinubu on Wednesday, November 4.
However, Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, later announced that the number of approving state assemblies had increased to 30.
Full List Of States That Approved The State Police Bill
The 30 states that have approved the proposed constitutional amendment to establish state police 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
- Zamfara
Bamidele explained that the 30 approvals had surpassed the constitutional requirement for the amendment to proceed. Under Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution, a constitutional amendment requires the support of at least two-thirds of the 36 State Houses of Assembly, representing 24 states.
He noted that the constitutional amendment process involves three major stages: approval by the National Assembly, endorsement by at least two-thirds of the state legislatures and presidential assent.
According to the Senate Leader, the requirement is designed to ensure that proposed changes to the Constitution enjoy broad support across the different levels of government.
He described the development as a significant achievement for Nigeria’s democratic and constitutional process.
Similarly, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, confirmed during Wednesday’s plenary that the bill would be transmitted to President Tinubu for assent.
Kalu expressed satisfaction with the support received from the state legislatures, describing the development as a major milestone in the country’s efforts to establish state police.
What The State Police Bill Seeks To Achieve
The proposed constitutional amendment is designed to create a legal framework that will allow individual states to establish, operate and manage their own police forces alongside the existing Nigeria Police Force.
The move is expected to significantly change Nigeria’s centralised policing system, which has been in place since independence.
Supporters of state police have consistently argued that allowing states to manage their own security operations would improve intelligence gathering, strengthen community policing and enable security agencies to respond more effectively to local threats.
The proposal comes amid persistent security challenges across the country, including banditry, kidnapping, terrorism, communal clashes and other forms of violent crime.
With 30 state assemblies now backing the proposed amendment and the National Assembly having transmitted the bill to the President, presidential assent is the next major step in the process.
If signed into law, the amendment could pave the way for states across Nigeria to establish their own police services and take greater responsibility for addressing security challenges within their territories.
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