In a bid to provide Nigerians with adequate opportunity to make well-considered contributions, 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.

The PWG said the deadline had been extended to Friday, August 21, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. West Africa Time (WAT), to give stakeholders additional time for thorough preparation and ensure that interested individuals, institutions, and organisations have the opportunity to make their contributions.

“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 proposed legislation is intended to provide the operational, administrative, institutional, and funding framework necessary for an effective policing architecture that responds to Nigeria’s evolving security needs while providing appropriate safeguards for accountability, professionalism, and the protection of citizens’ rights,” said Femi Gbajabiamila, Chairman of the Presidential Working Group on the National Policing Bill.

Gbajabiamila, in a statement he signed on Friday, explained that, given the significance of the proposed reform to the future of policing and internal security in Nigeria, the working group considered it important to afford stakeholders more opportunity to make substantive and technically sound contributions to the process.

He encouraged legal practitioners, civil society organisations, security sector professionals, state governments, professional bodies, academics, experts, and interested members of the public to take advantage of the extended period to submit their memoranda and position papers.

“All submissions must be made on or before 5:00 p.m. WAT on Friday, August 21, 2026, exclusively through the official National Policing Bill portal, nationalpolicingbill.com,” Gbajabiamila, Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, stated.

“The Working Group recognises that developing an effective policing framework requires careful consideration of critical issues, including sustainable funding, command and control structures, recruitment and training standards, operational jurisdiction, inter-agency coordination, accountability mechanisms, and safeguards against political interference or abuse.

“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.”

While appreciating stakeholders who had already made submissions and encouraging others intending to participate in the national process to take advantage of the extension, he said the Presidential Working Group would present a final, implementation-ready draft of the National Policing Bill for onward legislative processing.