Senate Seeks Overhaul Of Police Trust Fund, Expands Funding Sources

Nigeria’s Senate has proposed a new funding model to strengthen police operations and improve national security capacity.

The Senate is considering a bill to repeal and re-enact the Nigeria Police Trust Fund (Establishment) Act, 2025 aimed at creating multiple funding sources for the police to address chronic challenges that undermined its operational capacity.

The bill, according to the upper chamber, proposed one percent of total revenue accruing to the Federation Account for the police; allocated development levies under relevant tax laws; grants and interventions from federal, state, and local governments; donations and international support from bilateral and multilateral partners and private sector contributions and endowments.

Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele highlighted these proposals in his lead debate on the imperatives of amending the legislation, thus calling for a more effective legal framework for the funding, administration, and operational support of the police establishment.

The Nigeria Police had faced acute and chronic funding deficit in 2026, a condition that contributed insecurity and limited the ability of officers to respond decisively to diverse security challenges that plagued the federation.

Despite billions funneled to the police operations annually, police formations had operated with minimal funds, relying on unofficial sources for daily operations amid infrastructure decay, operational shortfalls, weak logistics support, inadequate security equipment and dependence on external aid.

Sponsored by Bamidele, the bill sought to enhance the operational capacity, technological capability, infrastructure renewal of the police formations and ensure predictable and sustainable funding streams.

Leading debate on the bill on Tuesday, Bamidele argued that the proposed legislation would ensure operational independence within a clearly defined legal framework as well as sustainable and diversified funding sources.

Bamidele outlined prioritised areas of interventions to include acquisition of modern security equipment and operational tools; deployment of digital surveillance systems and forensic technology; construction and rehabilitation of police stations and facilities; strengthening of training institutions and capacity building programmes, among others.

He further explained that the bill, when duly enacted, enhance intelligence gathering and operational efficiency; provide for emergency response during internal security crises as well as improve welfare packages for officers and personnel.

Bamidele also called for the establishment of a governance and institutional framework for the trust fund, including a robust governing board composed of key stakeholders: a chairman who is a retired senior police officer; representatives of relevant ministries – Police Affairs, Justice, and Finance; a representative of the Police hierarchy; and a representative of the organised private sector.

Supporting the bill, Minority Leader of the Senate, Senator Abba Moro threw his weight in support of the bill, noting that the trust fund was originally established to address the inadequate funding of the Nigeria Police Force.

Moro noted that police formations lacked the modern equipment required to effectively combat kidnapping nationwide.

Following extensive debates on the bill, President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio put the bill to a voice vote, with the majority of the lawmaking chorusing their support for the proposed legislation.

He noted that a public hearing would address lingering concerns, including accountability for previous Police Trust Fund expenditures, alternative sources of funding, and whether the proposed framework would accommodate state policing structures.

Akpabio also directed the Senate Committee on Police Affairs to brief the leadership on how past trust fund allocations were utilised.

The senate consequently referred the bill to the Senate Committee on Police Affairs chaired Sen. Ahmed Mallam-Madori, directing the committee to report the plenary in two weeks.