By Henry Umoru
ABUJA – The Senate has reaffirmed the National Assembly’s commitment to delivering people-centred and timely amendments to the 1999 Constitution.
Speaking on Friday at the two-day joint retreat of the Senate and House of Representatives’ Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution in Lagos, Deputy Senate President Senator Barau I. Jibrin (APC, Kano North) urged lawmakers to ensure that the first set of amendments is transmitted to State Houses of Assembly within the year.
The retreat was organized to allow members of the joint committees to review the proposed amendments “clause by clause.”
A total of 69 bills, 55 state creation requests, two boundary adjustments, and 278 local government creation requests will be considered during the retreat.
In a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ismail Mudashir, Senator Jibrin said:
“It has been a long journey to bring the Senate and House of Representatives Constitution Amendment proposals that cut across several sections and deal with different subject matters. We have been engaged in this process for the past two years, consulting constituents, stakeholders, institutions, civil society organizations, and interest groups through town hall meetings, interactive sessions, and public hearings. This process has culminated in 69 bills, 55 state creation requests, two boundary adjustments, and 278 local government creation requests.”
As chair of the Senate Committee on Constitution Review, Senator Jibrin emphasized that the committee is expected to resolve these issues and make recommendations to colleagues in both chambers. He acknowledged the challenge of completing this work within two days but expressed confidence that it could be achieved.
“We represent constituents with diverse ethnic, religious, and socio-economic backgrounds through different political platforms. However, the Constitution is the grundnorm for Nigerian citizens and nationhood, which we must approach with patriotism and nationalism as higher shared goals,” he said.
Senator Jibrin, who also serves as the First Deputy Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament, urged lawmakers to focus on what best serves Nigerian citizens and avoid competitive debates.
“We are seated here as one committee. There should be no ‘we’ and ‘them’; we should be guided by the interests of Nigerians. I wish all of us a very fruitful deliberation and hope for recommendations that will meet the approval threshold of the provisions of Section 9 of the Constitution,” he concluded.
Source; Vanguard News