State Police bill rushed, should be deferred till after 2027 polls

By Precious Mark

The 2027 presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has raised serious concerns over the newly passed State Police Bill, warning that the bill was disorderly and rushed.

In a statement released on Friday, Obi acknowledged that the bill addresses a long-standing structural flaw in Nigeria’s governance, noting that a highly centralized command system is no longer viable.

“For years, many of us, alongside security experts and regional stakeholders, have consistently argued that a highly centralised policing structure is fundamentally unsuitable for a country as vast, diverse, and complex as Nigeria,” Obi said.

However, he cautioned that the legislative and constitutional implementation appears shaky and raises legitimate concerns.

A major point of contention for the NDC flagbearer was the total absence of public hearings and citizens’ input before lawmakers passed the sensitive constitutional amendment.

He argued that a reform touching on grassroots security should have involved intense public scrutiny rather than a rushed executive or legislative push.

“The mechanism for passing the law appears highly disorganised, with no public hearing on such a sensitive issue. Indeed, the rush to enact the law without proper legislative procedures fuels suspicion among many observers about the political motives behind it,” Obi stated.

The former Anambra State Governor noted that the primary hazard of the new policy is rooted deeply in Nigeria’s history of political abuse by subnational executives.

He emphasized that without explicit firewalls, state governors are highly likely to abuse local police commands to consolidate their own power.

“There is a widespread, justifiable fear that state police forces could become instruments in the hands of governors. The suspicion is that a state-controlled police force could be weaponised to suppress political rivals, disrupt opposition rallies, and manipulate elections,” he warned.

To prevent the decentralized forces from becoming partisan tools, Obi insisted that independent regulatory buffers must be firmly established at the state level to shield operations from political overprotection or executive overreach.

“For state policing to evolve from a risky political gamble into a genuine security solution, the law must not only permit states to establish police forces but also clearly provide for independent oversight bodies, such as a state-level Police Service Commission that is entirely free from executive influence,” Obi argued, adding that this is the only way to ensure that policing serves the public interest rather than the interests of the ruling elite.

The NDC presidential candidate also expressed deep skepticism regarding the current administration’s willingness to maintain strict neutrality if state police forces are deployed under the current framework ahead of the 2027 general elections.

“Going by what Nigerians have seen so far, there is no guarantee that this administration can resist the temptation to take advantage of state policing to influence the 2027 general election by proxy.”

“In view of that possibility and the danger it poses to the polity, it is necessary to defer its implementation until after the general election,” Obi concluded.