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| Nigerian Senate And House Of Reps |
The Senate and the House of Representatives are set to begin harmonisation of the different versions of the Constitution Alteration Bill seeking the establishment of state police before transmitting the legislation to the 36 state Houses of Assembly for approval.
Naija Brain reports that while the House of Representatives passed the bill on June 10, the Senate approved the Executive Bill transmitted by President Bola Tinubu on June 24.
The proposed constitutional amendment will require the approval of at least two-thirds of the state Houses of Assembly before it can be presented to the President for assent.
The Senate version of the bill contains 26 clauses, while the House version has 18, with notable differences in several constitutional amendments proposed by both chambers.
A comparison of the two versions showed that while the House made limited amendments to Sections 34, 35, 39, 42, 89, 129, 153 and 197 of the Constitution, the Senate amended Sections 84, 89, 121, 124, 129, 157, 158, 160, 197, 201 and 202.
Both chambers proposed a new Section 214 to replace the existing constitutional provision establishing the Nigeria Police Force. However, the Senate introduced 15 new sub-clauses under the section, compared with seven contained in the House version.
The two chambers also differed in the structure of Section 215, which deals with the appointment and control of the police.
While the Senate titled the provision, “Appointment, Command, Direction and Tenure,” and designated the head of a state police command as “Commander,” the House retained the title “Appointment of Inspector-General of Police and Commissioner of Police of a State,” describing the head of the state police as “Commissioner of Police.”
Similarly, both chambers substituted Section 216 with entirely new provisions but assigned different responsibilities.
The Senate titled the section “National Police Standards, Oversight and Accountability,” while the House adopted “Removal of Inspector-General of Police and Commissioner of Police of a State.”
The Senate version also contains seven transitional provisions to guide the establishment of state police and introduces substantial amendments to the Second, Third and Fourth Schedules of the Constitution, whereas the House amended only the Second and Third Schedules.
Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives and Chairman of the House Committee on Constitution Review, Benjamin Kalu, said a conference committee would be constituted after the House resumes from recess on July 7 to harmonise the differences.
House spokesman Akin Rotimi also confirmed that the committee would reconcile the two versions before the final document is transmitted to the states.
Kalu described the bill as a product of extensive consultations involving the Executive and other stakeholders.
“In fact, at the moment, it is considered an Executive Bill. We have handled it at the House of Representatives, and the Senate has followed suit. Where we are now is that we’re going to have what we call the conference committee because we practise bicameral legislation,” he said.
According to him, the Senate and House versions are fundamentally the same, with only minor drafting differences.
“There is nothing fundamental. But we must be in tandem for it to become a unified piece of legislation from the National Assembly,” he added.
Kalu expressed confidence that the harmonisation process would be completed shortly after lawmakers resume.
“Once we come back from recess on July 7, the House will constitute the conference committee. If there is any need to convene an emergency meeting before then, the leadership of the National Assembly will consider it.
“Once we are done, we intend to hand it over to the states the same day. It will be a ceremonial handover where we invite the Speakers of the state Houses of Assembly and formally present the bill to them.
“I believe the governors have already done the groundwork and, once it gets to them, it should be back within a week for Mr President’s assent,” he said.
The deputy speaker noted that the proposal had received broad national support, including from state governors and the Conference of Speakers, which has pledged to ensure speedy consideration by state legislatures.
Kalu said the proposed legislation contains safeguards to prevent abuse of state police by governors and ensure adherence to national policing standards.
“The National Police Council will set the minimum standards. Any state that wants to establish a police service must meet those requirements before it is certified.
“States are free to exceed those standards, but the minimum benchmark is necessary to ensure professionalism and accountability,” he said.
Meanwhile, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said the state was prepared to establish its own police service once the bill becomes law, noting that Lagos would leverage the experience of retired security chiefs to strengthen its security architecture.