The House of Representatives has taken a major step towards replacing the current presidential system of government being run in Nigeria with the parliamentary mode.
This is as the House introduced three bills seeking to alter the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to transition from the current presidential system to a parliamentary system at all levels – federal, state and local government.
The bills, Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Alteration) Bill, 2024, HB.1115, HB.1116 and HB.1117, sponsored by the Minority Leader, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, and 59 others, passed first reading at plenary yesterday.
The proposed legislation seeks to replace the president with a prime minister to serve as the head of government and establish the office of the president as a ceremonial leader with the elective offices chosen from elected members of the legislature.
It also intends to shift the process of electing governors and chairmen of local governments from general election to voting within their respective legislative bodies, and reduce bureaucratic hurdles and foster closer collaboration between the executive and legislative branches.
Addressing journalists on the general principles of the Bills, spokesperson of the sponsors, Hon. Abdussamad Dasuki (PDP, Sokoto), the proposed alterations, when passed, would significantly impact the national political landscape.
Dasuki said when the parliamentary system of government was practised in the First Republic, it worked for the country as by its nature the elected representatives that were both in the legislative and executive arms of government were accountable to the people.
He argued the collapse of the First Republic and the long stretch of military rule culminated in the adoption of a new system of government, theoretically fashioned after the presidential system of the United States but in practice imbibed the uttermost attributes of military rule.
The lawmaker said the high cost of governance, leaving fewer resources for crucial areas like infrastructure, education, and healthcare, and consequently hindering the nation’s development progress, and the excessive powers vested in the members of executive are the imperfections of the presidential system of government.
“The bills presented today seek a return to the system of government adopted by our founders, which made governance accountable, responsible and responsive, and ultimately less expensive.
“With the presentation of these bills today, we hope to achieve the following: Ignite, provoke a national conversation about the future of the Nigerian governance system.
“Our conviction is that a streamlined executive branch, which replaces the president and vice president with a prime minister and cabinet chosen from the legislature, could lead to a smaller central government, reducing salaries and administrative expenses,” Dasuki stated.
The sponsors of the bills however said the take-off time for the new law is from 2023, apparently when President Bola Tinubu and others elected into offices for the first term might have completed their second tenures.
Senate Begins Constitution Review
At the Senate, the granting of local government, electoral reform and state creation are now in the front burner as the Nigerian Senate commenced the review of the 1999 constitution.
LEADERSHIP reports that the last Assembly failed to address these issues in the last amendment but hopes are now high on the 10th assembly to correct the wrongs.
Despite the last attempts for the fifth alteration of the 1999 constitution, issues of local government autonomy, election irregularities and creation of more states are some of the issues the Senate under Godswill Akpabio will be looking at.
Even though Nigerians, groups and associations would be required to bring a memorandum, the Senate has constituted a 43-member committee for constitution amendment by the 10th National Assembly.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio picked a senator from each of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT, Abuja), as well as one other Senator from each of the six-geo political zones across the country to work on the sixth alteration of the 1999 constitution.
In line with tradition, the Deputy President of the Senate, Jibrin Barau will serve as chairman of the committee, just as the Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, will serve as Deputy Chairman.
Other principal officers of the Senate are also members of the constitution amendment committee.
The Senate president directed the committee to invite the Speaker of the State Houses of Assembly for interaction, saying that the 1999 Constitution needs serious review.
“The inauguration of this very important committee will take place on Tuesday next week,” Akpabio said.
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