The Presidential Working Group says the National Policing Bill is nearly ready for transmission to the National Assembly, with the process expected to be completed within two weeks.
Chief of Staff to the President and chairman of the working group, Femi Gbajabiamila, disclosed this on Thursday after a steering committee meeting at the State House in Abuja.
He said the committee was about 90 per cent ready, with another meeting expected to address outstanding issues before the bill is transmitted.
“The National Policing Bill is more or less ready for transmission to the National Assembly,” Gbajabiamila said in a statement issued by the presidency.
“We will probably have one more meeting after this to cross the t’s and dot the i’s and make sure every area is covered. So, we are 90% ready.”
He added that state governors had raised a few observations that needed to be addressed before the bill could be finalised.
“The governors have one or two observations, and we should be ready in about a week or so,” he said.
The statement was signed by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.
Gbajabiamila backs state police reforms
Gbajabiamila described the proposed legislation as “the most consequential Bill of the administration so far”, saying it had undergone extensive deliberations in recent weeks.
The working group’s steering committee began its deliberations about two months ago.
He also expressed confidence that states would support the proposed constitutional amendment to establish state police, despite reports that only about six states had passed the Sixth Constitution Alteration Bill.
Gbajabiamila said there was a “national consensus” on the need for the constitutional amendments.
“I see no reason why anyone will want to have a rethink on it,” he added.
The proposed reforms seek to advance the establishment of state police, a longstanding issue in Nigeria’s security debate.
Governors, police chief attend meeting
The meeting was attended by the chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq; Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun; and Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani.
Inspector-General of Police Tunji Disu and representatives of the Federal Ministry of Justice also attended.
Other participants included retired Justice Abdullahi Liman, chairman of the Policy Advisory Committee; Olu Ogunsakin, head of the Nigeria Police Reform Secretariat; and Lanre Smart, Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters.
Representatives of the Nigerian Bar Association and the National Security Adviser also participated in the deliberations.
The bill is expected to proceed to the National Assembly for consideration once the working group concludes its remaining consultations.
