Ekiti State has taken another step towards decentralised policing after its House of Assembly passed a constitutional amendment bill seeking to establish State Police Services across Nigeria.
The bill, titled the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026, received the support of all 21 lawmakers present during plenary on Wednesday, October 21, marking the legislature’s formal backing for the proposed reform.
Following the passage, Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Adeoye Aribasoye, directed the Clerk of the House to transmit the approved document, together with the legislature’s observations, to the National Assembly.
The decision adds Ekiti to the group of state legislatures that have supported the proposed constitutional framework for establishing state-level police services.
The development comes amid continuing national discussions about whether Nigeria’s current policing structure can adequately respond to security challenges across its diverse communities.
Supporters of state police argue that decentralising certain policing responsibilities could bring law enforcement closer to residents and improve responses to local security threats.
However, the proposal remains part of a constitutional amendment process, meaning approval by an individual state assembly does not automatically create a state police service.
During deliberations, Aribasoye described the establishment of state police as an issue that had remained prominent in national discussions for more than two decades.
He said the country needed practical approaches to improving security and ensuring that law enforcement agencies could respond effectively to the needs of the communities they serve.
The Speaker pointed to public concerns about delayed responses to distress calls, operational limitations and the distance between law enforcement institutions and residents requiring assistance.
He argued that weaknesses in local policing coordination could threaten livelihoods, disrupt education, affect business confidence and reduce public trust in security institutions.
According to the Speaker, a properly structured state police system could strengthen accountability by bringing policing leadership and oversight closer to citizens and their elected representatives.
He also stressed that any decentralised policing arrangement would need appropriate constitutional safeguards to ensure responsible administration and effective oversight.
The Assembly’s position reflects an argument frequently advanced by advocates of state police, who believe local authorities may be better placed to understand the specific security challenges affecting their communities.
In their view, closer coordination between local communities and policing leadership could improve intelligence gathering, crime prevention and responses to emergencies.
Nevertheless, the effectiveness of such a system would depend on its operational structure, recruitment standards, funding arrangements, training and mechanisms for investigating complaints against officers.
The proposal also raises questions about how state police services would coordinate with the federal police structure and how responsibilities would be divided between the different levels of government.
These issues are central to the wider constitutional debate because establishing state police would require a clear legal framework governing their powers, responsibilities and relationship with existing security institutions.
The Ekiti Assembly’s Committee of the Whole examined the proposed constitutional amendment clause by clause before recommending that the House approve it.
According to the Assembly’s Committee on Media and Public Affairs, the committee recommended concurrence with the proposed amendment, subject to an amendment to Section 317A(5).
The recommendation formed part of the legislative consideration preceding the House’s approval of the bill.
The decision now places the focus on the National Assembly and the remaining requirements for completing the constitutional amendment process.
Under Nigeria’s constitutional amendment procedure, a proposed alteration must receive the required level of support from the National Assembly and at least two-thirds of the state Houses of Assembly before it can take effect.
Consequently, Ekiti’s approval represents one part of a broader nationwide process involving multiple legislatures.
The progress of the proposal will depend on the decisions of other state assemblies and whether the constitutional requirements are ultimately satisfied.
The wider debate has also involved concerns about preventing political interference, ensuring professional policing standards and protecting citizens’ rights under any future state police arrangement.
Supporters have emphasised the potential for more responsive security services, while questions remain about how accountability and independence would be maintained across different states.
For Ekiti, the immediate outcome is the legislature’s formal support for the proposed constitutional framework, rather than the immediate deployment of a new state police force.
The Assembly’s decision therefore adds to the ongoing national discussion about how Nigeria can improve public safety through institutional reforms.
As the bill moves through the next stages of the constitutional process, attention will remain on the level of support it receives from other state legislatures and the safeguards ultimately included in any approved framework.
The eventual outcome could shape the organisation of policing in Nigeria, but the proposal must first satisfy the applicable constitutional requirements before state police services can be established under the new arrangement.