Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Onyekachi Nwebonyi, has provided a detailed clarification on the division of responsibilities between the proposed federal and state police services, outlining a clear jurisdictional framework that assigns federal crimes to the Federal Police Service and local offences such as kidnapping, banditry, and other community-level security threats to state police formations. Speaking on the heels of the Senate's historic passage of the State Police Bill on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, Nwebonyi emphasised that the new dual policing structure is designed to strengthen Nigeria's security architecture by ensuring that federal and state authorities operate within clearly defined boundaries.
“The Federal Police Force will enforce federal laws and handle federal offences, including election security. State police will focus on crimes under state laws, such as kidnapping, banditry, and other local security offences,” Nwebonyi stated. His remarks provide critical clarity on a subject that has generated intense debate among lawmakers, governors, civil society organisations, and security experts since President Bola Tinubu transmitted the constitutional amendment bill to the National Assembly.
Under the landmark legislation, which was passed by the Senate with 87 votes in favour and is now awaiting concurrence by the House of Representatives and ratification by at least 24 State Houses of Assembly, the Federal Police Service will retain exclusive responsibility for terrorism, cybercrime, organised crime, arms trafficking, border security, inter-state criminal activities, election security, and the protection of federal institutions. The federal force will also retain sweeping emergency intervention powers, allowing it to temporarily assume operational command of state police services in cases of a breakdown of public order, threats to national security, administrative incapacity, or evidence that a state police service is being used for partisan, ethnic, or religious persecution.
State Police Services, on the other hand, will be empowered to enforce state laws, maintain public safety and public order, prevent and detect crimes within their jurisdictions, and protect lives and property. They will be led by Commissioners of Police appointed by state governors and confirmed by State Houses of Assembly, a departure from the current centralised appointment system. However, the bill contains extensive safeguards to prevent abuse, including a provision that explicitly prohibits state police commissioners from arresting, detaining, investigating, or deploying force against any person, political party, or group merely for criticising the government, except in accordance with the law.
Senator Nwebonyi, who represents Ebonyi North Senatorial District and serves as a member of the Senate Constitution Review Committee, has been a consistent advocate for the establishment of state police. In earlier interviews, he argued that state police has become imperative to mitigate security challenges that have overwhelmed the federal police. He has also raised concerns over police extortion on highways and vowed to initiate legislative measures to curb the practice.
The passage of the State Police Bill marks one of the most significant security reforms in Nigeria's history. If finally ratified, it will end the exclusive federal control of policing that has been in place since independence and create a constitutional framework for state police services for the first time. The bill also replaces the existing Nigeria Police Force with a Federal Police Service and establishes State Police Service Commissions responsible for recruitment, promotion, discipline, and oversight of state police personnel.
Governors and other executive officials witnessed the historic proceedings after the Senate initially resisted admitting them into the chamber. The governors of Ondo, Ogun, and Kaduna States, alongside the President's Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila and state attorneys-general, were eventually granted access following interventions by Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele. Senate Leader Bamidele, who led the debate, described the bill as a carefully designed framework to balance local policing autonomy with national cohesion, accountability, and constitutional oversight.
The bill now moves to the House of Representatives for concurrence, after which it will require presidential assent and ratification by at least 24 of the 36 State Houses of Assembly before becoming law. For now, Senator Nwebonyi's clarification provides a roadmap for what Nigerians can expect: a Federal Police Service focused on national security threats and state police services equipped to tackle the local crimes—kidnapping, banditry, and communal violence—that have plagued communities across the country.
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