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THE state police bill is set to commence its final leg in the National Assembly following the passage of the constitutional amendment clauses by 25 states Houses of Assemblies as of last weekend.

Deputy spokesman of the House of Representatives, Hon Phillip Agbese, who confirmed the development on Monday in an interview with the Nigerian Tribune said that President Bola Tinubu will soon assent to the constitution amendment bill after the ratification of the remittances from the state assemblies.

Honourable Agbese, disclosed that the National Assembly had commenced the process of receiving and collating the resolutions from the state legislatures.

He said the approval by the required number of state assemblies represented a significant milestone in the constitutional amendment process, adding that the National Assembly would proceed with the next stage once the Clerk to the National Assembly had authenticated the resolutions.

‘Now that the required two-thirds of State Houses of Assembly have approved the Constitution (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026, the National Assembly is in the process of receiving and collating the formal resolutions from the states,’ he said.

He added that the bill would be transmitted to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for assent once the constitutional requirement had been formally confirmed.

‘Once the Clerk to the National Assembly authenticates that the constitutional threshold has been duly met, the Bill will be transmitted to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for assent in line with Section 9 of the Constitution,’ Hon. Agbese stated.

The 25 states that have so far endorsed the legislative framework are Adamawa, Ogun, Delta, Plateau, Kwara, Edo, Osun, Oyo, Rivers, Zamfara, Abia, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bayelsa, Benue, Cross River, Ekiti, Enugu, Gombe, Imo, Kaduna, Nasarawa, Taraba, Yobe and Kebbi.

Under Section 9(2) of the 1999 Constitution, an amendment requires the support of at least two-thirds of the members of each chamber of the National Assembly and approval through resolutions of the Houses of Assembly of not fewer than two-thirds (24 of the 36 states).

Hon. Agbese described the development as a major step towards restructuring Nigeria’s policing architecture, which has been dominated by the Nigeria Police Force under the Federal Government.

‘This is a critical and irreversible step forward,’ he said, stressing that the proposed reform was intended to bring policing closer to communities and improve responses to security threats.

He, however, noted that the constitutional amendment was only one part of the process, as the Presidential Working Group was continuing work on the accompanying National Policing Bill, which would establish the operational framework for the proposed dual policing system.

‘Alongside this, the Presidential Working Group continues its work on the accompanying National Policing Bill, which will provide the detailed operational framework, standards, and safeguards for the dual policing system,’ the Deputy Spokesman said.

Hon. Agbese reaffirmed the commitment of the House leadership to completing the reform process, expressing optimism that the proposed arrangement would strengthen community-based security and make policing more responsive to the needs of Nigerians.

‘We remain committed to seeing this reform completed so that Nigerians can begin to enjoy the benefits of more responsive, community-based policing,’ he added.

The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026, also known as the State Police Establishment Bill, originated as an Executive Bill as part of efforts to address the country’s persistent security challenges and improve the effectiveness of law enforcement.

The National Assembly transmitted the bill to the 36 state Houses of Assembly on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, through the office of the Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamoru Ogunlana, following its passage by both chambers. The transmission was carried out pursuant to Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution and on the directive of the National Assembly leadership.

In a statement announcing the transmission, Barrister Ogunlana said the State Police Establishment Bill was the only constitutional alteration bill passed by both chambers of the National Assembly in the ongoing exercise at the time.

He explained that the state legislatures had been requested to consider the bill in accordance with their respective legislative procedures and communicate their resolutions to the National Assembly after concluding deliberations.

The CNA also indicated that the state assemblies had been given a 30-day administrative window to respond, clarifying that the period was not a constitutional deadline because the Constitution did not prescribe a specific timeframe for the submission of their resolutions.

The Senate passed the executive version of the bill on June 24, 2026, a day after receiving it, while the House of Representatives passed its version on June 11 before rescinding that earlier decision and adopting the executive version on July 23, 2026.

Meanwhile, the Ondo State House of Assembly on Monday passed the Bill seeking to establish state police in the country.

The bill scaled second and third readings during plenary, with all lawmakers present supporting its passage.

Moving the motion, the House Leader, Olatunji Oshati, said the lawmakers had carefully considered the implications of the proposed amendment, noting that state police would help address the country’s security challenges.

The motion was seconded by Allen Oluwatoyin, representing Ese-Odo Constituency.

The Speaker, Olamide Oladiji, described the proposed establishment of state police as long overdue, saying it would enable security agencies to respond more swiftly to crime and other security threats.

He added that decentralised policing would strengthen intelligence gathering, promote proactive security measures and help reduce criminal activities.

Oladiji directed the Clerk of the House to transmit the document, alongside the Assembly’s observations, to the National Assembly.

The passage comes amid growing support for the proposed constitutional amendment, which seeks to introduce a dual policing system in Nigeria.

The proposed amendment had secured the approval of 24 of the 36 State Houses of Assembly, meeting the two-thirds threshold required for constitutional alteration.

The Lagos State House of Assembly on Tuesday joined 24 other State Houses of Assembly in approving the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026, a move that clears the path for presidential assent and the eventual establishment of state police.

The plenary, presided over by Speaker Mudashiru Obasa, considered the bill after it was transmitted by the National Assembly for concurrence as required by law.

It will be recalled that the National Assembly formally advanced the ongoing constitutional review process by transmitting the Sixth Alteration Bill to the 36 State Houses of Assembly for review and approval.

The Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamoru Ogunlana, said the transmission was in line with Section 9(2) of the Constitution, which provides that any proposed amendment passed by the National Assembly requires concurrence via resolution by at least two-thirds-24 out of 36-of the State Houses of Assembly before it can be presented to the President for assent.

Central among the legislative proposals in the current alteration cycle is the Constitution Alteration (State Police) Bill, 2026, which has dominated national discourse in recent months.

The bill seeks to establish a framework for decentralised policing in Nigeria, creating a two-tier structure comprising a Federal Police Service and State Police Services. The proposal has received presidential backing following the inauguration by President Bola Tinubu of a Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill to develop the legal framework for the reform.

Proponents argue that decentralised policing will bring security closer to the people, improve rapid responses to local security threats, and address peculiar security challenges across states.

During deliberations, the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, described the amendment as timely and long overdue.

The Speaker said: ‘I strongly believe the proposed amendment is a good one for us. For so many years, and at every section by each assembly that has come, we always have a reason to deal with issues that has to do with security of our nation for the security of our people. So, it is a good one for us that this is taking place and happening in this 10th Assembly. Both the Senate and House of Representatives have done their own bits and sent to all Houses of Assembly. I congratulate each one of us.’

Speaking further after the voice vote that adopted the bill, the Speaker commended the National Assembly, but expressed reservations that the current draft still cedes too much control to the Federal Government.

‘Even though we are happy that we are having state police, our interest and position has not been well taken care of in this alteration. As you follow, you would realise that the major control still lies at the central. There is a provision that says where there is a conflict between the State Assembly and National Assembly, the federal prevails. But it is still a step forward. I want to believe that there is hope in the future that will give total control to the state,’ Obasa said.

He thanked President Tinubu for his firm belief in democratic institutions and for supporting the reform.

‘I want to thank the President for his firm belief in democratic institutions. We appreciate him. We commend both the National Assembly and House of Representatives for this move. We are not there yet. We still hope they will do the needful in appropriate time,’ he added.

The Speaker also used the opportunity to advocate for a legislative protection mechanism, proposing the establishment of a Parliamentary Police similar to what obtains in the United States.

‘There is no such provision in the state. There should be in the Act provision for the Parliamentary Police as we have in the United States if we are ready to protect the Legislature. Learning from past incident, a government will demolish a parliament just like that because of one person’s interest and desire. For this not to happen again, Parliamentary Police will go a long way in strengthening the legislation,’ he said.

Stakeholders from the South-South region, comprising youths, students and community leaders, have challenged critics of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project to visit the site and assess the level of work before forming opinions about the project.

The stakeholders spoke during an on-the-spot inspection of sections of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, where they toured the project alignment and inspected ongoing construction works between the Cross River and Akwa Ibom sections of the Coastal highway.

The inspection was led by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement, South-South, Hon. Gift Johnbull, who said the visit was designed to enable stakeholders to see the project for themselves rather than rely solely on reports in the mainstream and social media.

Johnbull, who is also the South-South Zonal Director for Infrastructure Mobilisation and Sensitisation for the 2027 Presidential Campaign, described the inspection as an act of patriotism, saying the participants wanted to form informed opinions based on what they saw on the ground.

She said the South-South region deserved the coastal highway because of its potential to facilitate trade, commerce and economic activities across the Niger Delta, adding that the region had long clamoured for such infrastructure.

According to her, the project demonstrates the political will of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, as well as the expertise of the Minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi, and the technology deployed by the contractor.

Johnbull rejected the argument that the swampy terrain of the Niger Delta made it impossible to construct durable roads, citing other delta regions around the world where major road infrastructure had been successfully developed.

She appealed to South-South residents to visit the project sites and independently assess the work, rather than ‘fight what we need and what we want,’ stressing that the region should support infrastructure capable of driving its economic development.

Also speaking, SA Student Affairs to the Governor, Otu/Convener, Community of Comrades South-South, Comrade Joseph-Kelvin Enyam, said the group embarked on the inspection after hearing conflicting narratives about the project.

Eyam stated that the group, mainly composed of various student unions, was especially driven by allegations that the coastal highway ended near Lagos. However, the physical evidence they found during their inspection contradicted these claims.

He said the group was impressed by the progress of work, including the employment of youths around the project area, and urged South-South residents to take ownership of projects capable of transforming the region.

On his part, Hi-Tech Site Engineer for Section 3B, Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway Project, Charbel Karam, said about 6.5 kilometres of the inspected section had been completed, with CRCP, streetlights, walkways, V-drains and box culverts completed.

Karam added that another six-kilometre section had also been completed, while work was continuing on a swampy portion of the alignment, expressing optimism that the remaining work would be completed within the next few months.

Providing update on technical progress, the Controller of Works, Federal Ministry of Works, Engineer Okuduwa Vincent, said approximately nine kilometres of the route had reached the CRCP stage, while Section 3A had recorded about 18 per cent completion.

Vincent said the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway had an overall length of about 750 kilometres, dismissing claims that its alignment had been abandoned. He explained that an additional connection to the East-West Road was being provided without cancelling the existing coastal highway alignment.

He disclosed that about 90 per cent of compensation had been paid to affected persons in Akwa Ibom, while the remaining payments were linked to a proposed realignment necessitated by difficult swamp terrain.

Vincent said the Cross River section covered 30 kilometres, while the Akwa Ibom section covered 41 kilometres, bringing the two sections to 71 kilometres, and assured that work was ongoing on both sections.

The Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, has assured Nigerians that policies to be introduced by President Bola Tinubu in 2027 will be geared towards ensuring collective prosperity, as she defended the administration’s ongoing economic reforms.

Sulaiman-Ibrahim gave the assurance on Tuesday at a national press conference organised by the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement ahead of the launch of a book titled The Courage to Reform: Architecture of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR – Beyond 2027: Statecraft, Vision for National Renewal, which examines the President’s reform agenda over the past three years.

Describing the reforms across various sectors of the economy as necessary and courageous, the minister said Tinubu had chosen to confront longstanding economic challenges inherited from successive administrations rather than pass them on to future generations.

She recalled that the President inherited difficult economic decisions when he assumed office on May 29, 2023, particularly concerning the cost of the petrol subsidy and a tax system she said placed disproportionate burdens on the people it was meant to protect.

‘When Mr President took the oath of office on 29 May 2023, he inherited hard choices that could no longer wait. A petrol subsidy was draining the resources meant for our schools, our hospitals and our roads, and our tax system weighed most heavily on the people it should have protected. He could have passed the problem to the next generation. He chose to confront it,’ she said.

Acknowledging the economic hardship Nigerian families had experienced following the reforms, Sulaiman-Ibrahim maintained that the sacrifices made by citizens would not be in vain, citing improvements in external reserves, easing inflation and renewed confidence in the Nigerian economy as signs of progress.

‘Those decisions came at a cost, and Nigerian families have felt it. No one in this government takes that sacrifice lightly, least of all Mr President. But I say to you today, with conviction, that the sacrifice is not in vain. The results are beginning to show,’ she stated.

The minister identified the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), the new tax laws and financial autonomy for local governments as some of the measures intended to extend the benefits of reform to ordinary Nigerians.

According to her, the education loan scheme is opening up opportunities for students from less privileged backgrounds, while the tax reforms are designed to protect low-income earners and small businesses from excessive tax burdens.

‘Just as the book clearly highlights that the tax reform is in favour of the low-income earners, the tax reform was designed so that those who earn little carry the least of the burden,’ she said.

Sulaiman-Ibrahim subsequently assured Nigerians that the administration’s policies in 2027 would focus on shared prosperity, adding that the government would continue to address the difficulties faced by households as the reforms progressed.

‘Whatever policies Mr President will introduce come 2027 will be towards ensuring our collective prosperity,’ she declared.

On concerns about Nigeria’s increasing borrowing, the minister argued that the country required substantial investment in productive sectors, infrastructure and critical systems to address years of underinvestment and accelerate economic development.

‘Show me a country that has developed, that has a strong economy, that is not in debt. I think the most indebted country in the world is the United States of America. And they’re still borrowing,’ she said.

She, however, stressed that borrowed funds must be directed towards projects capable of generating economic benefits, insisting that the administration’s borrowing decisions were deliberate and intended to support national development.

‘We should be sensitive to the fact that we’re still underinvested in the country and we need more resources. And when we borrow, we put it in places whereby we can see a lot of economic gains in them. So everything is being done deliberately, not blindly,’ she said.

The minister also acknowledged that the benefits of some government policies and announcements might not be immediate, explaining that implementation often required time, funding arrangements and coordination among relevant institutions.

Responding to questions about the implementation of promised measures, she said government announcements did not necessarily translate into immediate action, adding that the administration was working towards fulfilling its commitments.

‘Everything Mr President has promised, most of them have come to pass and this one too, if it’s not come to pass, it will come to pass shortly,’ she said.

On concerns over reports that the number of out-of-school children in Nigeria had increased from 14 million to 20 million, Sulaiman-Ibrahim acknowledged the challenge but pointed to government interventions in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education, technical and vocational education and training (TVET), and early childhood education.

She said the administration had increased its focus on skills development and early learning, adding that efforts were being coordinated across government to improve educational opportunities and address the factors preventing children from accessing education.

‘In the last three years, Mr President has done a lot to ensure that we’re not just addressing contemporary and conventional education, but we’re also creating pathways for people to deploy their skills. STEM education has gotten the right kind of priority. TVET has gotten a 360 degrees attention from every level of governance, from the national level to the state level,’ she said.

The minister further urged Nigerians to assess the administration based on its policies and measurable outcomes rather than political rhetoric, particularly as the country approaches the 2027 general elections.

She called on the media to provide factual information about the reforms and their implementation, maintaining that sustained efforts were required to ensure that the benefits reached households across the country.

‘As 2027 approaches, the national debate will grow louder. Let it also grow wiser, and let it rest on facts. I urge you, the press, to carry those facts to every corner of this country. Our leader and father has shown the courage to reform. It is now our shared duty to see these reforms through. Nigeria is on the road to renewal, and we will not turn back,’ she said.

The book launch is expected to feature President Tinubu as the Special Guest of Honour, with business leaders Alhaji Aliko Dangote and Alhaji Abdul Samad Rabiu serving as Chief Launcher and Co-Chief Launcher, respectively. High Chief Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, is the Chief Host, while the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, is the host. The Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, state governors and other distinguished leaders are also expected to attend.