The Presidency has unveiled a seven-week timeline for the drafting of the proposed State Police Bill, with the executive legislation expected to be presented to President Bola Tinubu for review on September 3 as part of efforts to establish state policing across Nigeria.
Chairman of the Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill and Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, disclosed this on Monday after the inaugural meeting of the committee at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The development follows the inauguration of the presidential committee by President Tinubu in July to develop the legal and institutional framework for the establishment of state police, a reform many stakeholders have advocated as a means of addressing the country’s growing security challenges.
Gbajabiamila said the committee had adopted a milestone-driven work plan running from July 27 to September 14, 2026, explaining that the executive bill would be submitted to the President on September 3 before wider consultations and eventual transmission to the National Assembly.
“The approved work programme is a seven-week, milestone-driven exercise running from July 27 to September 14, 2026,” he said.
“The resulting Executive Bill package is scheduled for presentation to the President on September 3. Subject to his approval, a national consultation on the completed draft will follow, after which the text and supporting materials will be revised and prepared for formal transmission to the National Assembly.”
He stressed that although the timeline was ambitious, it would not compromise the quality of the legislation.
“The timetable is demanding, but it is not a shortcut,” he added.
Gbajabiamila also announced that Nigerians would have the opportunity to participate directly in the drafting process through the submission of memoranda on the dedicated portal, nationalpolicingbill.com, describing public participation as critical to the success of the proposed legislation.
According to him, the portal would remain open for about 10 days to receive contributions from citizens, with the possibility of an extension if necessary.
“I talked about memoranda that will be open to the public from today—hopefully for about ten days. If there’s a need for an extension, we’ll extend that,” he said.
“The public is included. No matter your station in life, you have an opportunity to contribute meaningfully, because the whole idea behind state policing is for you and I and everybody sitting here and everybody out there to take ownership.”
On the financial implications of creating state police, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives said it was too early to put a figure on the cost, insisting that any estimate must be based on comprehensive research rather than speculation.
“There is no cost to securing life and property. That is the first fundamental reason for being in government,” he said.
“At this stage, giving you a cost will be pulling something out of thin air. So we’re not going to be doing guesswork here or guesstimating as to what the cost is.
“The cost will be evidence-based. It will be based on thorough research and on a state-by-state basis because one state differs from another in terms of personnel, architecture, infrastructure and local security needs.”
The proposed state police initiative is one of the major security reforms being pursued by the Tinubu administration to strengthen internal security, improve community policing and enhance collaboration between the federal and state governments in tackling insecurity.
If approved by the President after the consultation process, the executive bill will be transmitted to the National Assembly for legislative consideration before becoming law.
