State Police: NEC Sets Submission Deadline for States

The NEC set the deadline on Wednesday during a meeting presided over by Vice President Kashim Shettima.

Briefing State House Correspondents shortly after the meeting at the Council Chamber of the State House in Abuja, Bayo Lawal, the Acting Governor of Oyo State, stated that four of the 36 states had yet to submit their stances to the NEC.
According to Lawal, the NEC requested that the four states make their positions on the subject known by Monday.

While the four states were not identified during the meeting, the NEC stressed that after Monday, any state that failed to submit would be forced to accept whatever judgment was eventually made.

Calls for State Police.
The last few years have been dominated by discussions concerning state police, with certain leaders, including governors and regional sociopolitical groups such as Afenifere and Ohanaeze Ndigbo, claiming that it would reduce the frightening trend of kidnapping, banditry, and other crimes.

The calls for the formation of state police spurred President Bola Tinubu and the 36 state governors to strike an agreement in mid-February 2024.

They agreed to establish state police to address the country’s rising security challenges.

A month following the agreement, 16 governors presented reports to the National Economic Council (NEC) indicating their support for the establishment of state police and amending the 1999 Constitution to allow for it.

Since then, other states have filed their viewpoints on the subject, leaving only four states that have yet to do so.

Though many people and organizations have advocated for the establishment of state police, the notion has received considerable opposition from some quarters.

Some believe that money could be a difficulty for state police, as some governors would demand an increase in monthly appropriations to their states.

Others have argued that state governors would utilize the state police to pursue political opponents.