Barring any changes, the House of Representatives is set to complete the activities for the review of the 1999 Constitution in December 2025.
Currently, 40 Constitution alteration bills are before the House and are at various stages of consideration.
Deputy Speaker and Chairman of the House Constitution Review Committee, Hon. Benjamin Kalu, disclosed this at the pre-inaugural meeting of the panel on Wednesday.
Kalu also announced that the Committee will be formally inaugurated on February 26, 2024, and the pre-inaugural meeting was held to expedite the commencement of preparations, constituting the secretariat for Constitution Review, appointing consultants, and drafting a work plan for the Committee.
He explained that the proposed December 2024 date was to avoid conflict with electoral activities ahead of the 2027 general election, which could inadvertently affect the alteration process.
“It is also the view of Mr. Speaker that we set a realistic timeline that does not conflict with electoral activities, which could inadvertently affect the alteration process, specifically December 2025, the time we are looking at to conclude the activities of this committee.
“It is not out of place to guess that there is some level of fatigue in the in the Amendment process by some vocal sections of the populace. Whatever opinion you hold, it is important to let you know that we presently have 40 bills that are at various stages of consideration which relate to the Alteration of the Constitution.
“Secondly, we are well aware of our present challenging circumstances as a nation. The twin challenge of insecurity and economic difficulties could temper the confidence of our citizens. It is therefore our constitutional responsibility to respond to the 40 bills so far proposed and also attend to the duty of Government to ensure the the security and welfare of the citizen as provided by the Constitution,” Kalu said.
The Deputy Speaker noted that since 2010, the National Assembly has successfully amended and made landmark changes to Nigeria’s Constitution since it was first handed over to the country in 1999 by the military regime of General Abdulsalam Abubakar.
He said: “Since then, some of the significant amendments successfully made by
previous efforts include judicial reforms, electoral reforms, age reduction, allowing younger persons to be appointed into the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as Chairman or Resident Electoral Commissioners and also allowing a lower age for contest into certain elective positions, moving certain responsibilities of government from the Exclusive Legislative List into the Concurrent Legislative List to allow for increased federalism among other things.
“The Committee is fully aware of the concerns of Nigerians on the need to finalise and conclude discussions around Nigeria’s Constitution. I will like to state however that the nature of Nigeria’s Constitution and the history around how it was made and handed over to a new civilian government in 1999, makes it imperative for us to continually revisit the several provisions of the Constitution and work towards accomplishing consensus on outstanding constitutional debates.”
Kalu reminded the Committee that in the last Constitution Review efforts, there were some key Constitution amendment proposals that did not pass either because lawmakers did not fully understand their provisions or did not have enough time to agree on them.
He said one of such was the proposal to create additional seats for women in Federal and State Legislative Houses and urged lawmakers to give attention to the suggestion while its promoters should start their advocacy timely and be more thorough and comprehensive.
Kalu urged the Committee to prepare to work very hard and timeously to deliver on citizens’ expectations of concrete amendments in the shortest possible time.
He said the parameters of the jurisdiction of the Committee include: “Commencing the alteration of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999) and other Acts that are to be altered, in accordance with section 8 and section 9 of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“Receiving and considering any proposal, Bills for the alteration of the 1999 constitution (as amended), which may be made or referred to by the Acts, ensuring the alterations to the constitution are passed by the National Assembly and assented to by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“Creating a forum for relevant stakeholders and Members of the Public to make their inputs to the constitution review process, to enact laws to improve the wellbeing and aspirations of the Nigerian people.
“To build a robust and collaborative relationship with the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the 36 States Houses of Assembly, whose resolutions are part of the legislative journey to the Bills; liaise with relevant government agencies, civil society organisations, multilateral and supranational agencies, to achieve a wholesome amendment to the Nigeria’s constitution.
“Liaise with relevant government agencies, Civil Society organizations, multilateral and supranational agencies to ensure a wholesome amendment to the Nigeria’s Constitution.”
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