The Presidential Working Group on the establishment of state police says the National Policing Bill is 90 per cent ready for transmission to the National Assembly, with submission expected within the next two weeks.
Chief of Staff to the President and Chairman of the Working Group, Femi Gbajabiamila, disclosed this on Thursday October 15, 2026 while briefing journalists after a meeting of the group’s steering committee at the State House in Abuja.
Gbajabiamila said the committee might hold one more meeting to review the bill and ensure that all outstanding issues were addressed before its transmission to the legislature.
“The National Policing Bill is more or less ready for transmission to the National Assembly. We will probably have one more meeting after this to cross the t’s and dot the i’s and make sure every area is covered. So, we are 90% ready. The governors have one or two observations, and we should be ready in about a week or so,” Gbajabiamila said.
He described the proposed legislation as “the most consequential Bill of the administration so far,” noting that it had undergone rigorous deliberations in the weeks since the working group’s steering committee commenced its engagements on August 3.
On concerns that state governments might delay the passage of the Sixth Constitution Alteration Bill, which seeks to establish state police, Gbajabiamila expressed confidence that the proposed amendment would receive the necessary support. His comments followed reports that only about six states out of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory had passed the constitutional amendment.
The presidential aide maintained that there was broad agreement across the country on the need for the proposed reforms, expressing optimism that the amendment would not encounter significant resistance from state governments.
“I see no reason why anyone will want to have a rethink on it,” he said.
Those present at the steering committee meeting included the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and Governor of Kwara State, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq; Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun; Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani; and the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu.
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice was represented by the Solicitor-General and Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Justice, Beatrice Jedy-Agba.
Other participants included the Chairman of the Policy Advisory Committee, Justice Abdullahi Liman (rtd.); Head of the Nigeria Police Reform Secretariat, Professor Olu Ogunsakin; and Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters (House of Representatives), Lanre Smart.
Also in attendance were the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Planning and Research and Secretary of the Committee, Nnadubem Moghalu; a representative of the President of the Nigerian Bar Association; and Assistant Inspector-General of Police Abraham Nabhon Thomas, who represented the National Security Adviser.
