President Bola Tinubu on Thursday approved the conferment of 959 national honours and endorsed reforms to strengthen the funding framework for the Nigeria Police Force.

This came as he presided over marathon meetings of the National Council of State and the Police Council at the State House, Abuja.

Addressing State House correspondents after the meetings, the Permanent Secretary of the Cabinet Affairs Office, Dr. Emanso Umobong, said the President approved the report of the National Honours Award Committee for 2024 and 2025, as well as special awards that were earlier bestowed by the President from January 2025 to date.

According to Umobong, the current honours committee, reconstituted in August 2021 and chaired by Justice Sidi Bage, screened over 5,000 applications before recommending 824 recipients for the 2024/2025 National Honours and 135 special awardees, totalling 959 honourees.

?The award of titles of honour and decorations of dignitaries is a yearly event at which the President honours deserving nationals and non-nationals who have distinguished themselves in the service of the nation and humanity,? she said.

Umobong added, ?After diligent screening and selection by the committee, a total of 824 successful applicants were recommended for the 2024/2025 National Honours and 135 special awards by the President, bringing it to a total of 959 awardees.?

She noted that President Tinubu, in the spirit of inclusive national recognition, had already honoured several distinguished Nigerians and friends of Nigeria in the past year, including Bill Gates, for contributions to public health, Uncle Sam Pemu for journalism, and the Super Falcons and D?Tigress for excellence in sports.

Others include the Ogoni Nine and Ogoni Four, honoured posthumously for environmental activism, and Professor Mahmood Yakubu, the outgoing INEC Chairman, recognised for service to Nigeria?s democratic process.

The updated list of awardees, Umobong said, would be published soon.

Following the Council of State session, President Tinubu chaired the Nigeria Police Council, where members approved major reforms to the Nigeria Police Trust Fund.

In his first-ever briefing to journalists since assuming office in August 2023, Minister of Police Affairs, Ibrahim Geidam, said the Council ratified proposals to repeal and re-enact the 2019 Police Trust Fund Establishment Act to remove its six-year limit and transform it into a permanent agency.

?The sunset clause of six years in the current Act limits the lifespan of the Nigerian Police Trust Fund and impedes long-term planning, thereby constraining sustainable police reform.

?We also prayed that the Council approve the repeal and re-enactment of the Nigerian Police Transparency Establishment Act 2025 in order to remove the sunset clause and transition it into an agency,? Geidam said.

He explained that the Council further approved an upward review of the Police Trust Fund?s allocation from 0.5 per cent to 1 per cent of the Federation Account, as well as a directive to the Attorney-General of the Federation to incorporate all resolutions into an executive bill for submission to the National Assembly.

Established in 2019, the NPTF was designed to bridge funding gaps in policing by supporting training, welfare, technology acquisition, and logistics. However, its limited tenure and budget constraints have long hindered sustainable reforms. (The PUNCH)

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