The Senate and House of Representatives will constitute a joint conference committee after resumption on July 7 to reconcile differences in their versions of the State Police Bill.
While the Senate version contains 26 clauses, the House version has 18, with both chambers proposing different amendments to several sections of the Constitution.
One major difference is the title of the head of a state police command, with the Senate proposing “Commander” while the House prefers “Commissioner of Police.”
Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu said the differences are largely minor drafting issues and expressed confidence that harmonisation would be completed quickly.
Kalu said the bill enjoys broad national support, including backing from President Bola Tinubu, and would be transmitted to state Houses of Assembly immediately after harmonisation.
He added that the bill contains safeguards to prevent abuse by state governments, with the National Police Council setting minimum operational standards for all state police services.
The bill must secure approval from at least two-thirds of the 36 state Houses of Assembly before it can be presented to the President for assent.
