The House of Representatives has passed the executive bill seeking to establish state police services in Nigeria. The bill was passed during plenary on Thursday, July 23, 2026, with a total of 311 lawmakers participating in the voting process.
Voting Details and Speaker's Disclosure
Speaker of the House, Abbas Tajudeen, disclosed that 35 lawmakers participated in the voting virtually, while 276 members were physically present in the chamber. The passage followed the consideration and adoption of the report of the House Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution, chaired by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, during plenary.
Bill Content and Presidential Transmission
The bill, titled “A Bill for an Act to Alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, to Provide for the Establishment of State Police Services and for Related Matters (HB. 2797),” seeks to amend the Constitution to create a legal framework for the establishment of state police services. President Bola Tinubu recently transmitted the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (Alteration) (State Police) Bill, 2026, to the House of Representatives.
Significance and Minority Walkout
The passage is a milestone in the country’s push to decentralize its security architecture. However, the Minority Caucus in the House staged a walkout from the chamber in protest over the passage, accusing the House leadership of violating constitutional provisions and the chamber’s Standing Orders.
Minority Leader's Statement
Addressing journalists shortly after leaving the chamber, the Minority Leader, Fredrick Agbedi, alongside other caucus leaders, insisted that their action was not borne out of opposition to state police but against what they described as the abuse of parliamentary procedures. Speaking on behalf of the caucus, Agbedi said the Speaker, while presiding as Chairman of the Committee of the Whole, ignored clear constitutional requirements governing the alteration of the Constitution.
“The Constitution is the grand norm. It is the rule book from which even our Standing Orders derive their powers. For the Speaker, acting as Chairman of the Committee of the Whole, to disregard the clear provisions of Section 9(2) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, is a great affront to the workings of the House of Representatives,” he said.
