Reps' Agbese: National Assembly Leading on State Police

Hon Philip Agbese, the Deputy Spokesman of the House of Representatives and a member of the Labour Party, asserted that the 10th National Assembly is actively leading the creation of bills and policies to address the needs of Nigerians, countering claims that lawmakers merely endorse executive proposals. Speaking on Wednesday in Abuja, Agbese highlighted that the House has been working on several initiatives, including the establishment of state police, prior to the executive's introduction of its own bill on the matter.

He argued that the executive's recent initiative should be seen as a means to harmonize proposals from both arms of government rather than as a sign of a rubber-stamp parliament. Agbese emphasized that the state police initiative originated from the National Assembly and has been under consideration for some time.

He also addressed calls from some lawmakers for the National Assembly to suspend its recess due to pressing national challenges, questioning the timing of these demands with the 2027 general elections approaching.