By The House of Representatives has recorded overwhelming support for the proposed State Police Bill, with 311 lawmakers voting in favour of the constitutional amendment during Thursday’s plenary.
Speaker of the House, Dr. Abbas Tajudeen, announced the outcome after members considered the report of the House Committee of the Whole on the Constitution Review Committee’s recommendations. He explained that the electronic voting system, adopted by the House, showed that the bill secured the backing of 311 lawmakers—well above the two-thirds majority required for constitutional amendments.
The session, however, witnessed a brief disruption after Minority Leader Fred Agbedi and Minority Spokesman Victor Ogene attempted to raise points of order but were not recognised by the Speaker. The disagreement later prompted a section of the Minority Caucus to stage a walkout after the report on the State Police Bill was adopted.
Addressing journalists after the walkout, Agbedi clarified that the minority caucus was not opposed to the creation of state police. Rather, he said their objection was to the manner in which the proceedings were handled, arguing that members were denied the opportunity to debate the bill clause by clause and formally record their votes in line with the Constitution and the House Standing Orders.
The Minority Caucus also submitted a letter to the Speaker expressing support for state police in principle but calling for the bill to be recommitted for further legislative work. According to the lawmakers, the current draft contains constitutional ambiguities, drafting inconsistencies, governance gaps and unresolved institutional issues that should be addressed before final passage.
Among its recommendations, the caucus proposed that 15 per cent of the Federation Account allocation currently accruing to the Federal Government should be transferred to states to enable them to finance the responsibilities that would come with establishing and operating state police services. The lawmakers argued that transferring policing responsibilities to states without adequate financial backing could undermine the effectiveness of the reform.
