By Cross Udo, Abuja
The Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill has extended the deadline for submitting memoranda and position papers on the proposed legislation to 5 p.m. on Friday, August 21, 2026.
The extension was announced on Thursday in a statement issued by the Chairman of the Working Group and Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila.
The group said the additional time was intended to enable stakeholders to make more detailed and informed contributions to the proposed policing framework.
According to Gbajabiamila, the extension would allow individuals, institutions and organisations that wish to participate in the process to prepare comprehensive submissions.
“The Presidential Working Group is committed to ensuring that the process of developing the National Policing Bill benefits from broad consultation and the informed perspectives of Nigerians and relevant stakeholders,” the statement said.
The proposed legislation is expected to establish the operational, administrative, institutional and funding framework for a more effective policing system, while providing safeguards for accountability, professionalism and citizens’ rights.
The Working Group said the importance of the proposed reform to Nigeria’s internal security made broader stakeholder participation necessary.
It urged legal practitioners, civil society organisations, security professionals, state governments, professional associations, academics and other interested members of the public to use the extended period to submit their views.
“Stakeholders are afforded more opportunity to make substantive and technically sound contributions to the process,” the group said.
The Working Group said submissions must be made exclusively through the official National Policing Bill portal before the new deadline.
It identified sustainable funding, command and control, recruitment and training, operational jurisdiction, inter-agency coordination, and accountability as critical issues to be considered.
It also highlighted the need for safeguards against political interference and abuse within the proposed policing structure.
The group said effective policing reform would require a framework capable of responding to the security realities of communities across the Federation while remaining accountable and sustainable.
“These considerations underscore the importance of robust stakeholder engagement in developing a framework that is effective, accountable, sustainable and responsive to the peculiar security needs of communities across the Federation,” it said.
At the conclusion of its assignment, the Working Group said it would submit a final, implementation-ready draft of the National Policing Bill for onward legislative processing.
It thanked stakeholders who had already submitted memoranda and encouraged others to take advantage of the extended deadline to contribute to the national reform process.
