By Ajibola Olaide, JKNewsMedia Reporter
THE HOUSE of Representatives has passed the state police bill following a plenary session on Thursday presided over by the Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas.
JKNewsMedia.com reports that two hundred and eighty-eight lawmakers voted in support of the bill, while four voted against it, a day after members debated the proposal on the floor.
Voting was conducted by a show of hands after Abbas stated that the electronic voting system was not functional. The Sergeant at Arms was directed to conduct the count as members were counted manually.
Before voting, Usman Zubairu, representing Birnin Gwari/Giwa federal constituency in Kaduna, raised a point of order requesting more time for scrutiny of the document, saying members needed to examine it properly.
But Abbas ruled that the bill had already been extensively debated.
The Deputy Speaker and Chairman of the House Committee on Constitution Review, Benjamin Kalu, presented the report and said addressing insecurity remains a national imperative.
He said the proposal followed a public hearing and received broad support, adding that there is a national consensus that state police will improve response time.
During the count, some lawmakers objected to the process, while Kalu later announced that 289 members voted in support and four voted against. The Speaker subsequently clarified that 289 voted in support, one abstained, and none voted against.
The House had earlier released the final print of the Constitution Alteration Bills proposing a constitutional framework for the establishment of state police.
Speaker spokesperson, Akintunde Rotimi, said the proposals followed months of work by the House Committee on Constitution Review after reviewing inputs from lawmakers, government institutions, professional bodies, civil society organisations, traditional institutions and citizens.
The bill seeks to move policing matters from the exclusive legislative list to the concurrent list, allowing both the National Assembly and state assemblies to legislate on security.
It empowers the National Assembly to define the structure, organisation and powers of the federal police while setting the framework for state police.
It provides that no state police force shall operate without a state law and certification that it meets national minimum standards.
Federal police will continue operations in all states until state police become functional and will retain federal policing duties while assisting state forces.
Also, JKNewsMedia.com reports that the federal police are mandated to maintain public security, order and protection of persons and property nationwide, and may operate within states as permitted by the constitution.
Intervention in state policing is restricted to cases of breakdown of law and order, a governor’s request, or operational failure, subject to approval of the National Police Council.
However, House of Reps say the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) remains under federal police jurisdiction.
The Senate has passed the bill through second reading and referred it to its Committee on Constitutional Review, with voting expected at a later sitting.
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