Obi: No guarantee state police will not be used to rig 2027 election

By Ayorinde Oluokun

The presidential candidate of National Democratic Party, NDC, for the 2027 election, Peter Obi, has advised that the establishment of state police should be deferred till after the poll.

Obi said this while arguing that the there is no guarantee that the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will not use state police to influence the 2027 election if it is established now in a post on his X handle on Friday.

“Going by what Nigerians have seen so far, there is no guarantee that this administration can resist the temptation to take advantage of state policing to influence the 2027 general election by proxy. In view of that possibility and the danger it poses to the polity, it is necessary to defer its implementation until after the general election,” the NDC governorship candidate said.

Before reaching this conclusion, Obi had acknowledged that the passage of the State Policing Bill by the National Assembly was a significant legislative milestone in addressing a long-standing demand of the Nigerian people.

“For years, many of us, alongside security experts and regional stakeholders, have consistently argued that a highly centralized policing structure is fundamentally unsuitable for a country as vast, diverse, and complex as Nigeria,” Obi said.

But he said the process of passage of the bill by the National Assembly was rushed, thus necessitating legitimate concerns.

He claimed that a public hearing was not organised before the passage of the bill for the creation of state police.

Obi also regurgitated the arguments of some who opposed the state police over potentials for its abuse by state governor.

“The process should involve greater community participation. Policing should be more visible at the local government and community levels. The mechanism for passing the law appears highly disorganised, with no public hearing on such a sensitive issue. Indeed, the rush to enact the law without proper legislative procedures fuels suspicion among many observers about the political motives behind it.

“The greatest concern does not arise from logistical issues; it stems from history. There is a widespread, justifiable fear that state police forces could become instruments in the hands of governors. The suspicion is that a state-controlled police force could be weaponised to suppress political rivals, disrupt opposition rallies, and manipulate elections,” the NDC presidential candidate said.

He argued that to turn state policing from a risky political gamble into a genuine security solution, “the law must not only permit states to establish police forces but also clearly provide for independent oversight bodies, such as a state-level Police Service Commission that is entirely free from executive influence, to ensure that policing serves the public interest rather than the interests of the ruling elite.”

The two chambers of the National Assembly have passed the bill on state police.

However, the process of establishment of state police can only be concluded after concurrence to the bill by two thirds of the state houses of assembly.