President Bola Tinubu has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to the establishment of state police across Nigeria, saying he has assured the United States and European partners that the reform would be implemented to tackle the country’s worsening security challenges.
The President disclosed this on Thursday while addressing the 14th National Caucus meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja.
Tinubu said decentralised policing “must happen” if Nigeria is to effectively confront insecurity, adding that he had expressed confidence to foreign partners that his party would provide the political backing needed to pass the reform.
“I had a very long discussion with the US and European partners. I was bragging to them that definitely we will pass a state police to improve security,” the President said. “They asked me if I’m confident, and I said yes — I have a party to depend on.”
The President also stressed the need to make local government autonomy functional in practice, urging state governors to stop withholding funds meant for local councils.
His remarks come amid growing national concern over widespread insecurity, renewed calls for decentralised policing, and increased pressure to implement the recent Supreme Court judgment granting financial autonomy and direct allocations to local governments.
Addressing party leaders, Tinubu said the APC, as the ruling party, must demonstrate leadership at the grassroots through reconciliation, flexibility and internal cohesion, while holding governors and other stakeholders accountable for governance outcomes in their states.
He argued that the Supreme Court ruling on local government autonomy would be meaningless without proper funding, insisting that allocations to councils must be released directly to them.
“There is no autonomy without a funded mandate. Give them their money directly. That is compliance with the Supreme Court,” Tinubu said.
The President added that political reconciliation and tolerance within the party were essential to stability and progress, warning that failure at the leadership level would undermine governance reforms.
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