The Rivers State House of Assembly has approved the constitutional amendment process required to pave the way for the establishment of state police in Nigeria.

The development follows the transmission of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026, by the National Assembly to the 36 state Houses of Assembly for consideration and approval.

Key Takeaways

• The Rivers State House of Assembly has approved the proposed constitutional amendment relating to state policing.
• The amendment seeks to allow states to establish and maintain their own police services.
• The Nigeria Police Force would retain responsibility for national security matters under the proposal.
• At least 24 state Houses of Assembly must approve the amendment before it can proceed to the President for assent.
• The proposal includes safeguards intended to prevent state police authorities from targeting people or groups for criticising governments.

What Rivers State Approved

The Rivers State Assembly’s action relates to the constitutional amendment required before states can establish their own police services.

The bill had already been passed by the National Assembly before being transmitted to the state Houses of Assembly for consideration.

The approval by Rivers State therefore forms part of the wider constitutional process required for the proposed restructuring of policing responsibilities in Nigeria.

What the Constitutional Amendment Seeks to Change

The proposed amendment would establish a dual policing structure in which states could create and maintain their own police services while the Nigeria Police Force would continue to handle matters considered national security responsibilities.

Under the proposal, those national responsibilities would include areas such as terrorism, border security, cybercrime and arms trafficking.

The arrangement would therefore create separate state-level policing responsibilities while retaining a national policing structure for security matters that extend beyond individual states.

Safeguards in the Proposal

The proposed amendment also contains provisions intended to guard against the abuse of state policing powers.

Among the safeguards is a provision barring state police authorities from targeting individuals or groups because they criticise state governments.

The provision is part of the proposed framework for regulating how state police authorities would operate if the constitutional amendment eventually takes effect.

What Happens Next

Rivers State’s approval is only one stage in the constitutional amendment process.

The proposal must secure approval from at least 24 of Nigeria’s 36 state Houses of Assembly before it can move to the next stage and be transmitted to President Bola Tinubu for assent.

The outcome will therefore depend on the decisions of the remaining state assemblies considering the constitutional amendment.

What to Watch

The next major development will be the number of state Houses of Assembly that approve the proposed amendment and whether the required threshold is reached.

The process will determine whether the constitutional changes necessary for states to establish and maintain their own police services can proceed to the presidential assent stage.

Conclusion

The Rivers State House of Assembly’s approval represents one step in the broader constitutional process for proposed state policing in Nigeria.

The immediate focus now shifts to the other state assemblies and whether enough approvals are secured for the amendment to advance to the President for assent.