Politics
ADC, Obi Warn Against Political Abuse, Demand Wider Consultations Over State Police – THISAGE
From Victor Osula, Abuja
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, have raised concerns over the passage of the proposed State Police Bill by the Nigerian Senate, warning that the reform could be vulnerable to political abuse if implemented without adequate safeguards and broader stakeholder consultations.
While reaffirming their long-standing support for decentralised policing, the ADC and the former Anambra State governor argued that the current framework for establishing state police is being rushed and lacks the institutional safeguards required to guarantee accountability and public confidence.
In a statement issued on Friday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC accused the Tinubu administration of treating a far-reaching constitutional reform as an emergency response to the country’s worsening insecurity.
“The African Democratic Congress (ADC) supports state police. We have always believed that Nigeria’s policing architecture must evolve to reflect the realities of our federal system. But support for state police cannot be confused with support for the Tinubu administration’s handling of this important national reform”, Abdullahi said.
According to the party, state police is too significant a reform to be hurried through the National Assembly without extensive public engagement.
“What we are witnessing is a hurried response to a worsening security crisis, not the careful institutional planning required to build a functional, accountable and effective policing system. State police is too important, and the security of Nigerians too urgent, to be reduced to a quick legislative fix or rushed through the National Assembly without the broad consultation such a far-reaching reform demands”, the statement read.
The ADC maintained that decentralised policing is not a new concept, noting that it has formed part of Nigeria’s constitutional debate for decades and enjoys broad national consensus.
“It is equally important to state that there is nothing novel about the idea of state police. Decentralised policing has been part of Nigeria’s constitutional and political conversation for decades and today enjoys broad national support. What is new is the attempt by the Tinubu administration to package this long-standing national consensus as a bold new initiative and, worse, to present it as a silver bullet for the country’s current security crisis. It is neither”, Abdullahi added.
The opposition party also questioned why the Federal Government only moved to advance the constitutional amendment at this stage of the administration if it had always considered state police a priority.
It warned that legislation alone would not improve security, stressing that creating an effective state policing system would require recruitment, training, funding, operational structures, and independent oversight, all of which cannot be achieved overnight.
The party further expressed concern over the absence of constitutional safeguards to prevent state police from becoming instruments of political intimidation.
“What safeguards will prevent state police from becoming instruments of political intimidation? What guarantees exist for genuinely independent state legislatures and judiciaries capable of exercising meaningful oversight? Who will regulate recruitment, deployment, discipline and funding? Where are the accompanying reforms to prosecution, correctional services, forensic capacity and intelligence coordination? These are not secondary questions. They are the difference between building a professional police service and creating another institution that may be vulnerable to abuse”, he noted.
The ADC insisted that state police should complement—not replace—ongoing reforms of the Nigeria Police Force, advocating a multi-layered policing system comprising federal, state and community policing backed by independent oversight and wider justice sector reforms.
Echoing similar concerns, Peter Obi described the National Assembly’s approval of the State Police Bill as a significant milestone towards addressing Nigeria’s security challenges, but urged that its implementation be suspended until after the 2027 general elections.
In a statement posted on his Facebook page on Friday, Obi argued that while Nigeria’s centralised policing system has struggled to tackle insecurity across the country’s diverse regions, the implementation framework for state police remains weak and susceptible to abuse.
He faulted the legislative process that led to the bill’s passage, saying a constitutional amendment of such national importance should have undergone wider public hearings and stakeholder consultations.
“The rush to enact the law without proper legislative procedures fuels suspicion among many observers about the political motives behind it”, Obi noted.
The former Anambra governor warned that state police could be placed under the effective control of governors and used to intimidate opposition figures, suppress political activities and influence election outcomes, noting that Nigeria’s political history makes such concerns legitimate.
To guard against abuse, Obi proposed the establishment of an independent State Police Service Commission insulated from executive interference before the law takes effect.
He also questioned whether the current administration could resist using state policing structures to influence the 2027 general elections, arguing that postponing implementation until after the polls would reassure Nigerians of the government’s commitment to a credible and non-partisan reform process.
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