Presidential panel extends deadline for state police memoranda, position papers to August 21

The Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill has extended the deadline for the submission of memoranda and position papers on the proposed legislation to Friday, August 21.

The deadline, initially set for an earlier date, was extended to give individuals, institutions and organisations more time to prepare and submit contributions to the proposed reform of Nigeria’s policing architecture.

The working group, chaired by Femi Gbajabiamila, chief of staff to President Bola Tinubu, said the extension was aimed at widening stakeholder participation and ensuring an inclusive consultation process.

The proposed National Policing Bill is expected to provide the operational, administrative, institutional and funding framework for a more effective policing system capable of responding to Nigeria’s evolving security challenges.

It is also expected to strengthen professionalism, accountability and the protection of citizens’ rights.

In a statement, the working group urged legal practitioners, civil society organisations, security sector professionals, state governments, professional bodies, academics, technical experts and other interested members of the public to use the additional period to submit their views.

It said broad-based participation was important given the far-reaching implications of the proposed legislation for policing and internal security across the country.

The working group said submissions could address issues including sustainable funding, command and control structures, recruitment and training standards, operational jurisdiction and inter-agency coordination.

Other areas include accountability mechanisms and safeguards against political interference and abuse.

According to the panel, the issues require extensive consultation to ensure that the proposed framework is operationally effective, accountable, sustainable and responsive to the security needs of communities across the federation.

The working group said all memoranda and position papers must be submitted by 5pm West Africa Time on Friday, August 21, 2026.

It said submissions must be made exclusively through the official National Policing Bill portal.

The panel said it would, at the conclusion of its assignment, present a final, implementation-ready draft of the National Policing Bill for onward legislative processing.