The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)/Transparency International Nigeria has cautioned that the proposed State Police framework could deepen security inequality across Nigeria if lawmakers fail to address concerns over funding, accountability, and political interference before the constitutional amendment is fully ratified.
The organisation warned that significant differences in the financial and institutional capacities of states could create a two-tier policing structure in which wealthier states maintain effective security systems while poorer states struggle to recruit, train, equip, and retain personnel.
In a statement issued on Friday, CISLAC Executive Director and Head of Transparency International Nigeria, Comrade Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, said decentralised policing offers opportunities for improved intelligence gathering and stronger community engagement, but cautioned that the reform could generate new governance and security challenges if critical safeguards are overlooked.
According to the organisation, many state governments already face difficulties meeting basic obligations such as salary and pension payments, raising questions about their ability to sustain modern police organisations without dedicated and protected funding mechanisms.
CISLAC also raised concerns about the potential politicisation of state police formations, warning that governors and other political actors could exploit the system to intimidate opponents, suppress dissent, and influence electoral processes unless operational independence is constitutionally guaranteed.
The group further called for transparent and merit-based recruitment processes, insisting that political loyalists, thugs, and other politically exposed individuals should be barred from integration into state police structures.
It urged State Houses of Assembly to subject the constitutional amendment to rigorous public scrutiny during the ratification process and strengthen provisions relating to oversight, human rights compliance, independent audits, procurement transparency, and professional standards.
Rafsanjani stressed that state policing should not be viewed as a quick solution to Nigeria’s security crisis, noting that the transition would require substantial investments in technology, intelligence coordination, training, and institutional development.
“State policing holds immense potential to enhance local responsiveness to insecurity, but without ironclad safeguards, it risks becoming a new frontier for abuse and fragmentation,” he said.
CISLAC called on the Federal Government and the National Assembly to establish a multi-stakeholder transition committee to oversee implementation and ensure consistency, professionalism, and accountability across all state police formations.