by Ola Williams:
The Senate on Wednesday passed the Constitution Alteration Bill establishing state police across Nigeria, advancing a constitutional reform aimed at decentralising the country’s policing structure amid worsening insecurity nationwide.
The bill cleared the floor after more than two-thirds of senators backed it through a manual voting process, adopted earlier in the session over concerns that faulty electronic voting devices could disenfranchise lawmakers. Senate President Godswill Akpabio announced the passage following consideration of a report by the Senate Committee on the Review of the Constitution, presented by Deputy Senate President and committee chairman, Barau Jibrin.
Debate on the bill was led by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, who moved the motion for manual voting, telling colleagues: “There is a need to also ensure transparency both within ourselves as people that will be performing this major constitutional responsibility, as well as members of the public.” He added: “Rather than go by way of electronic voting, which obviously is not the case today, and disenfranchise a few or so of our colleagues whose machines are not working, I am moving that we give every distinguished senator the opportunity to answer his or her father’s name by doing manual voting.”
Under the arrangement, senators stood individually, announced their names, and declared their positions on the proposed framework. The motion was seconded by Senate Minority Leader Abba Moro, with lawmakers noting the process would also make each senator’s stance known to constituents.
The Senate had initially voted to bar governors and senior officials from the chamber floor, in line with rules restricting floor access to senators. Akpabio appealed for a reversal, noting that the proposal originated from the executive arm and that the amendment would ultimately require ratification by state Houses of Assembly. Following his intervention, Bamidele moved to suspend Order 12 of the Senate Rules to admit the officials as strangers — a motion backed by Barau Jibrin, who commended Akpabio’s “inclusive leadership style.”
The chamber subsequently admitted Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani, Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun, Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, and Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, who watched the clause-by-clause voting from the floor.
The bill now requires concurrence by the National Assembly and ratification by at least two-thirds of the 36 state Houses of Assembly before state-controlled police forces can be established alongside the Nigeria Police Force.
