Ondo State House of Assembly has approved the bill for the establishment of State Police, endorsing the proposed constitutional amendment to decentralise policing in Nigeria.
The approval followed extensive deliberations during plenary presided over by the Speaker, Rt. Hon. (Chief) Olamide Oladiji, on Monday, October 26th, 2026. The lawmakers supported the proposed amendment to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), by more than the required two-thirds majority.
The proposal was conveyed to the Assembly in a letter from the Clerk to the National Assembly, Mr. Kamoru Ogunlana, which was read by the Speaker on September 24th.
Following the consideration of the bill, the Committee of the Whole House recommended that the Assembly grant concurrence to the proposed constitutional alteration, subject to an amendment to Section 317A(5). The committee said it had examined the bill clause by clause.
Speaking on the development, Oladiji described state police as a long-standing national issue that had remained at the forefront of public discourse for more than two decades.
He said the proposed reform was a necessary step towards strengthening security and governance, stressing that the country could not afford further delays in addressing its security challenges.
“Following the extensive deliberations and thorough scrutiny of this bill by this Honourable House, it is clear that this is the least we can do to strengthen security and governance in our dear state,” the Speaker said.
The Committee of the Whole House identified several potential benefits of state police, including improved grassroots intelligence gathering, faster responses to emergencies and more effective crime prevention.
It also noted that state police could complement the Federal Police Service by addressing local security challenges, allowing the federal institution to concentrate on interstate crimes and other complex security matters.
On agricultural and road security, the committee observed that state police could help protect farmers against kidnapping and attacks, improve security in farming communities, support food production and strengthen safety along highways.
The Speaker subsequently directed the Clerk of the House to transmit the bill to the National Assembly alongside the observations and recommendations made by the state legislature, in line with the constitutional amendment process.
The development comes amid efforts to establish a legal framework for decentralised policing in Nigeria. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on July 7th, 2026, inaugurated the Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill to prepare the framework for implementing state police across the country.
The initiative followed the National Assembly’s passage of the Constitution Alteration (State Police) Bill, 2026, which proposes a dual policing structure comprising a Federal Police Service and 36 State Police Services.
The proposed reform seeks to bring policing closer to communities and improve Nigeria’s capacity to tackle insecurity.
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