Ondo State lawmakers on Monday approved a constitutional amendment to allow state police services, with all members present backing the proposal after its second and third readings.
Speaker Olamide Oladiji directed the assembly's clerk to send the resolution and the legislature's observations to the National Assembly.
The vote supports a change to Nigeria's policing framework rather than establishing an operational Ondo police service. The proposal is the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026.
House leader Olatunji Oshati moved the motion for passage, while Allen Oluwatoyin, who represents Ese-Odo, seconded it. Oshati said lawmakers had considered the proposed amendment's implications for residents.
Oladiji argued that policing closer to communities would improve intelligence gathering and help security agencies respond more quickly to crime.
The vote follows the reported approval of the amendment by 24 state assemblies last week. The Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill had said that support met the constitutional threshold for state endorsement.
Ondo's resolution will now go to the National Assembly for further legislative consideration.
Sources: Punch; Daily Post; Vanguard
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