A coalition of over 20 Nigerian civil society organisations (CSOs) has issued a stern call to the federal government, expressing deep concern over the failure to officially gazette the revised Police Regulations five years after the landmark Nigeria Police Act was signed into law in 2020.
In a joint statement, the groups warned that the delay is actively undermining police reform, weakening accountability, and stalling the nation’s security sector reform agenda.
According to the coalition, which includes prominent groups like the Centre for Democracy & Development (CDD), Global Rights, and the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), the Police Regulations are the crucial day-to-day operational rules that guide the Nigeria Police Force (NPF). These regulations cover everything from recruitment and discipline to conduct and welfare.
The CSOs argue that without the new regulations being officially published, the NPF is forced to operate under “vague, outdated, colonial-era operational rules” that conflict with Nigeria’s democratic goals and international human rights commitments.
“This delay undermines the effectiveness of the reforms introduced in the Police Act,” the statement read. “It perpetuates rules that no longer align with Nigeria’s democratic aspirations.”
The groups highlighted several critical consequences of this inaction, Officers are left to operate under ambiguous rules that are open to arbitrary interpretation, Oversight bodies like the Police Service Commission (PSC) and civil society cannot effectively monitor the police’s compliance with modern standards, With police playing a key role in election security, the lack of clear, modern rules creates opportunities for abuse and inconsistent policing during electoral cycles and Progress in critical areas such as rights-based policing, gender sensitivity, and responses to modern threats like cybercrime and terrorism is blocked.
The CSOs drew a direct line from this legislative inertia to public discontent, referencing the 2020 #EndSARS protests, which highlighted widespread demand for a transparent and accountable police force.
“Reforms that remain only on paper cannot restore public trust,” the coalition warned. “Without enforceable operational standards, the gap between citizens and law enforcement will continue to widen, fuelling mistrust, insecurity, and cycles of violence.”
The coalition has called on the Presidency, the Ministry of Police Affairs, and the Police Service Commission to take immediate action.
Their demands include: Immediately finalise and gazette the revised Police Regulations, Ensure the regulations are publicly accessible in print, online, and in simplified formats, Establish a system for periodic reviews of the regulations every three to five years, Conduct comprehensive training for all police officers on the new rules and Strengthen oversight by aligning monitoring tools with the updated regulations.
“Gazetting the revised Police Regulations is not a bureaucratic afterthought. It is a constitutional duty, a democratic necessity, and a security imperative,” the statement concluded. “The time to act is now.”
