The Jigawa State House of Assembly has endorsed the proposed State Police Bill, with Speaker Haruna Aliyu Dangyatin saying the initiative will strengthen grassroots safety, enhance responses to native threats and create employment alternatives for teens.
Dangyatin disclosed this on Wednesday after the House endorsed the invoice throughout plenary on the Assembly Complex, describing the proposed state police system as a crucial step in direction of addressing Nigeria’s rising safety challenges.
He stated decentralising policing would allow safety personnel to reply extra successfully to threats by drawing on their information of native terrain, communities and safety dynamics.
According to the Speaker, the choice adopted in depth deliberations by the Assembly and consultations with conventional rulers, civil society organisations {and professional} our bodies.
He defined that the National Assembly transmitted the proposed constitutional modification to the 36 state Houses of Assembly on September 23, 2026, for concurrence in keeping with constitutional necessities.
“We have done the needful and endorsed the State Police Bill because our people need security that is close to them,” he stated.
Dangyatin described the prevailing centralized policing system as overstretched, arguing that state police would complement the federal police and enhance safety operations, significantly in rural communities.
“The Nigeria Police as presently constituted is overstretched. State Police will bring policing closer to the people and address our peculiar challenges,” he stated.
He added that the Assembly constituted a particular advert hoc committee to look at the proposed constitutional amendments and have interaction related stakeholders earlier than arriving at its choice.
The Speaker stated the consultations indicated assist for a decentralised policing association that may complement, slightly than substitute, the federal police.
Beyond safety, Dangyatin stated the proposed system might create employment alternatives for certified younger folks, particularly indigenes acquainted with the safety challenges of their communities.
He stated the institution of a State Police Service Commission would offer an institutional framework for recruiting and administering personnel.
“Most of our teeming youths who are indigenes of the state will have the opportunity to be employed. Those who understand the security architecture of their localities can contribute meaningfully to maintaining peace and protecting lives and property,” he stated.
On the timing of the endorsement, Dangyatin dismissed options that the Assembly had intentionally delayed consideration of the invoice, explaining that the legislature was in recess when it acquired the proposed modification.
He stated the vote was initially scheduled for the earlier week however was affected by his engagement as a director within the presidential marketing campaign council, which required him to attend a gathering in Abuja.
The Speaker, who can be the National Vice-Chairman of the Police Community Relations Committee, stated he was decided to preside personally over the session due to his longstanding curiosity in neighborhood policing and safety issues.
He described the endorsement as a major milestone in his tenure, expressing satisfaction in presiding over the session.
“It is a matter of pride for me to preside over the session that passed the State Police Bill. I want history to record that during my tenure as Speaker, I chaired the session in which we voted for state police,” he stated.
Addressing considerations that governors may use state police to intimidate political opponents, Dangyatin maintained that such fears shouldn’t overshadow the pressing have to deal with insecurity.
He stated the initiative was supposed to enhance public security and strengthen safety operations on the grassroots.
“The President and the governors have done this with good intentions to address the insecurity people are talking about in the country,” he stated.
Dangyatin assured residents that the Assembly’s choice was guided by transparency, patriotism and the pursuits of the folks, including that the proposed association might enhance safety responses and allow certified youths to serve their communities.
“We will not compromise the interest of Jigawa State and Nigeria at large. This endorsement is for the future of our democracy and the safety of our people,” he stated.
Ibrahim Shuaibu in Dutse
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