State Police: Constitutional Threshold Met as 24 States Approve Bill

By Lateepha Eniola, Assistant Editor

To help curb insecurity, at least 24 state assemblies have approved resolutions supporting the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026, which paves the way for the creation of the state police services.

But there are 12 states that are yet to approve the bill.

The National Assembly needs the approval of at least 24 states (two-thirds of Nigeria’s 36 state Houses of Assembly) under Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution to pass the state police constitutional amendment bill.
The National Assembly Clerk, Kamoru Ogunlana, transmitted the bill to all 36 State Houses of Assembly on September 16, 2026, for their review and approval.

The Sixth Alteration Bill amends section 214 of the Constitution to replace the single Nigeria Police Force with a Federal Police Service and State Police Services as part of efforts to address the country’s security challenges.

The Adamawa State House of Assembly on Tuesday passed 24 out of 26 clauses of the state Police Bill, 2026, rejecting two clauses.

At an emergency sitting on Tuesday, the lawmakers, who had been on recess in China, spent over two hours reading each section of the Alteration Bill for members to approve or disapprove.

Speaker Bathiya Wesley, who presided over the session, directed the Clerk of the House to produce a clean copy of the approved 24 clauses and transmit them to the National Assembly.

The states that have approved are as follows:

1. Adamawa State

2. Delta State

3. Edo State

4. Kwara State

5. Nasarawa State

6. Ogun State

7. Osun State

8. Oyo State

9. Plateau State

10. Rivers State

11. Taraba State

12. Zamfara State

13. Enugu

14. Anambra

15. Imo

16. Ekiti

17. Kebbi

18. Akwa Ibom

19. Bayelsa

20. Benue

21. Cross River

22. Abia

23. Yobe

24. Kaduna

The nine northern states yet to approve are:

1. Kogi

2. Niger

3. Borno

4. Gombe

5. Bauchi

6. Jigawa

7. Katsina

8. Kano

9. Sokoto

The three Southern states yet to approve are:

1. Lagos

2. Ondo

3. Ebonyi

Currently, 14 of the 17 southern states have endorsed the bill and 10 of the 19 northern states have okayed the move.

Five of the 10 states are in the North-West zone. The North-Central has two and North-East three states.

Meanwhile, the Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill has expressed satisfaction that the Constitution (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026, providing for a dual policing system, has been approved by 24 State Houses of Assembly, meeting the constitutional threshold of two-thirds of the 36 states.

The Working Group commended the State Houses of Assembly for their decisive action on the reform of national importance and appreciates the National Assembly for passing the amendment in both chambers.

In accordance with Section 9 of the Constitution, the amendment can now be returned to the National Assembly for transmission to the President for assent.

This approval provides constitutional backing for the policing framework that the Working Group’s draft National Policing Bill (2026) aims to implement.