Former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi has expressed support for the creation of state police in Nigeria but cautioned that flaws in the legislative process and the absence of adequate safeguards could leave the system vulnerable to political abuse.
Obi made his position known in a statement posted on his X account on Friday, following the National Assembly’s passage of the constitutional amendment bill seeking to establish state police across the country.
While describing the legislation as a major step towards addressing Nigeria’s security challenges, the former Anambra State governor argued that the implementation process raises concerns that must be addressed before the new policing structure is put into operation.
“The recent passage of the State Police Bill by the National Assembly marks a significant legislative milestone in addressing a long-standing demand of the Nigerian people,” Obi said.
He noted that Nigeria’s current centralised policing system has long been considered inadequate for a country with its size, diversity and complex security challenges.
“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,” he stated.
Despite welcoming the reform, Obi criticised the manner in which the legislation was processed, saying it lacked sufficient public participation.
“The process should involve greater community participation. Policing should be more visible at the local government and community levels,” he said.
He further argued that the absence of a public hearing on such a significant constitutional amendment had raised questions about the transparency of the legislative process.
“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,” he added.
Obi also warned that, without strong institutional safeguards, state police could become tools in the hands of state governors to intimidate political opponents and influence elections.
“The greatest concern does not arise from logistical issues; it stems from history. There is a widespread, justifiable fear that state police forces could become instruments in the hands of governors,” he said.
According to him, any state policing framework must provide for independent oversight institutions capable of operating free from executive interference.
“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 stated.
The former presidential candidate also questioned whether the current administration could resist using state-controlled police structures for political advantage 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,” he said.
He therefore called for the implementation of the state police framework to be postponed until after the 2027 general elections.
“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 added.
The National Assembly recently approved constitutional amendments to establish state police as part of ongoing efforts to reform Nigeria’s security architecture.
The proposed amendments must still be ratified by at least two-thirds of the state Houses of Assembly before they can become law.