Tinubu, Governors Rushing State Police In Order To Rig 2027 Elections—  Buba Galadima

A chieftain of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Buba Galadima, has claimed that President Bola Tinubu and state governors are pushing for the creation of state police ahead of the 2027 general elections so they can deploy the outfit to intimidate political opponents and manipulate elections.

Galadima, who spoke on Arise TV, made the allegation while reacting to ongoing efforts to amend the Constitution to establish state police across the country.

According to him, the campaign for state police is not genuinely aimed at addressing Nigeria's worsening insecurity but is politically motivated.

"Nobody ever conceived the idea of state police to sort out security. If the police, military, cannot solve security situations in Nigeria, I wonder how the state police will be able to do that,” he said.

“All that we know is that the president and governors are looking for state police before the elections so that they can use them as political thugs to attack the opposition.”

His remarks come as the Nigerian Senate recently passed a constitutional amendment bill seeking to establish state police, marking a significant step towards restructuring the country's policing system amid persistent security challenges.

The bill was approved after lawmakers considered and adopted its 26 clauses during the Committee of the Whole, paving the way for further legislative processes required to amend the 1999 Constitution.

The proposed legislation seeks to create a constitutional framework that would allow states to establish and operate their own police services alongside the existing federal policing system currently controlled by the Nigeria Police Force.

The Senate's action followed President Bola Tinubu's transmission of a Constitution Alteration Bill to the National Assembly, urging lawmakers to amend relevant sections of the Constitution to accommodate state police.