Nigeria’s parliament has taken a major step toward one of the country’s most consequential security reforms in decades, approving legislation that would allow each of the country’s 36 states to establish and operate their own police forces alongside the existing federal Nigeria Police Force.

The measure, which enjoys broad political support and has the backing of President Bola Tinubu, still requires approval by at least two-thirds of Nigeria’s state assemblies before it can take effect. If implemented, however, it could fundamentally reshape the country’s response to terrorism and communal violence after years of consistent failure under the current centralized system.

For decades, policing in Nigeria has been controlled almost exclusively from Abuja, the federal capital. Federal security officers are frequently deployed far from their home regions and are often unfamiliar with the communities they serve, yet are expected to provide security services for areas wracked by deep communal strain. State governors bear political responsibility for security but typically exercise little operational control over the police forces within their own states.

Critics of the existing system have long argued that this arrangement has contributed to dangerously slow responses to attacks and, in some cases, outright negligence.

Communities throughout northern and central Nigeria regularly report situations in which military or police units stationed only a short distance away fail to intervene while attacks are still underway. By the time security personnel arrived, villages had already been burned, civilians killed, and survivors forced to flee.

International Christian Concern (ICC) has documented numerous examples throughout the years in which vulnerable Christian communities reported warnings of impending attacks to the authorities, but have received no protection.

In 2022, residents of Owo in southwestern Nigeria repeatedly raised concerns about insecurity before Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP)-linked militants attacked St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church during Pentecost services, killing dozens of worshippers. Questions surrounding intelligence failures and the lack of a timely response persisted long after the massacre.

These occurrences have only become more frequent in the years since.

Similarly, communities in southern Kaduna state have for years complained that attacks by armed Fulani militants frequently conclude before security forces arrive, despite the presence of military installations nearby. Survivors and church leaders often accuse authorities of failing to act on warnings or intervene quickly enough to protect vulnerable populations.

Such frustrations have fueled calls for greater local accountability and security structures more closely connected to the communities they are tasked with protecting.

Long History of Violence

Nigeria has faced significant internal violence for years, largely at the hands of terrorist groups and militant Fulani extremists. Tens of thousands have been killed or abducted by these groups, and hundreds of thousands have been displaced.

The most prominent of these organizations is Boko Haram, which was founded as an Islamic movement in 2002 before launching a violent insurgency in 2009. Over time, the group splintered into multiple factions, briefly joining and then splintering off from Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), which aligned itself with the global Islamic State movement.

While many Muslims have also suffered from these groups, Christians have borne a disproportionate share of the violence. Churches, pastors, Christian villages, and religious leaders have repeatedly been singled out for attack.

Successive governments under presidents Goodluck Jonathan, Muhammadu Buhari, and Bola Tinubu have struggled to contain the violence. Despite increased military spending and repeated promises of reform, many affected communities continue to live under constant threat.

The United States returned Nigeria to its Countries of Particular Concern (CPC) list in 2025, citing ongoing concerns regarding severe violations of religious freedom.

Opportunities and Risks

Advocates argue that state police forces could dramatically improve intelligence gathering and response times while allowing officers with deeper knowledge of local communities and languages to address threats more effectively.

Yet the proposal also raises legitimate concerns.

Human rights advocates have warned that governors could misuse state police forces against political opponents or minority communities. Concerns about accountability, funding, and coordination between state and federal authorities remain unresolved.

Nigeria’s own history provides examples of how political leaders have abused security structures.

During the tenure of former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai, he selectively used security forces against peaceful protesters while failing to adequately confront extremist violence affecting Christian populations. Many residents of southern Kaduna argued that authorities responded more aggressively to demonstrations than to attacks carried out by armed militants.

Those concerns underscore an important reality: abuse of power is not unique to a decentralized system.

Indeed, critics argue that Nigeria’s existing federal structure has itself proven vulnerable to political interference and local misuse. State governors have often exercised informal influence over security operations despite lacking formal authority, while affected communities have had little ability to hold distant federal institutions accountable.

For state policing to succeed, it must be accompanied by robust accountability mechanisms, transparency, strict adherence to human rights norms, and protections for individual freedoms. Local populations must also have meaningful avenues to hold security institutions accountable for failures or abuses.

If implemented properly, the reform could mark one of the most significant steps Nigeria has taken in decades toward addressing the insecurity that has devastated countless communities.

For Christians and other vulnerable populations living under the constant threat of Boko Haram, ISWAP, armed bandits, and extremist Fulani militants, more responsive and locally accountable security institutions could mean the difference between life and death.

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