By Sabiu Abdullahi
The Presidency has fixed September 3, 2026, as the date for presenting the proposed executive bill on state policing to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for consideration.
The timeline was disclosed on Monday by Femi Gbajabiamila, chairman of the Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill, after the committee’s inaugural meeting at the State House in Abuja.
President Tinubu had inaugurated the committee in July to prepare the legal framework required for the implementation of state police across Nigeria.
Gbajabiamila explained that the committee had adopted a seven-week work plan that runs from July 27 to September 14, 2026. He said administrative and technical work on the proposed legislation had already begun.
He said, “The approved work programme is a seven-week, milestone-driven exercise running from July 27 to September 14, 2026.
“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.
“The timetable is demanding, but it is not a shortcut.”
Gbajabiamila also addressed questions on the financial implications of establishing state police. He said it would be premature to provide any estimate because the assessment would depend on detailed research rather than assumptions.
“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.”
He added that members of the public would have the opportunity to contribute to the drafting process by submitting memoranda through the dedicated website, nationalpolicingbill.com.
“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.
“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.”
