BREAKING: Ondo Assembly approves state police bill

By Boye Oyeyemi

The Ondo State House of Assembly has approved a proposed constitutional amendment to establish state police, citing the need to tackle insecurity, protect farmers and strengthen crime-fighting efforts at the grassroots.

The lawmakers approved the proposal during plenary on Monday after considering a bill seeking to amend the 1999 Constitution to provide for the establishment of state police services.

The bill was transmitted to the assembly by the Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamoru Ogunlana, in a letter read by Speaker Olamide Oladiji on September 24. It subsequently passed the second and third readings after securing the support of more than the constitutionally required two-thirds majority.

Before the approval, the Committee of the Whole House examined the bill clause by clause and recommended its passage, subject to an amendment to Section 317A(5). Following the assembly’s concurrence, Oladiji directed the clerk to forward the bill, alongside the lawmakers’ observations and recommendations, to the National Assembly.

The speaker said the proposed reform presented an opportunity to address Nigeria’s persistent security challenges, stressing that protecting lives and property required practical action rather than prolonged debate.

“Following the extensive deliberations and thorough scrutiny of this bill by this honorable house, it is clear that this is the least we can do to strengthen security and governance in our dear state,” Oladiji said.

The lawmakers said state police could improve intelligence gathering, facilitate quicker responses to emergencies and enable security operatives to better understand the peculiar security challenges facing their communities.

They added that the proposed arrangement could help protect farmers from kidnappings and attacks, secure highways and support food production. They also argued that it would allow the Federal Police Service to focus on interstate crimes and other complex offences.

The assembly’s approval represents the state legislature’s position on the proposed constitutional amendment. The bill must proceed through the constitutionally prescribed process involving the National Assembly and the required number of state legislatures before the amendment can take effect.