Constitution Review: Premium opportunity for well-bred Nigerians to grab
The subject of the positional status of the subsisting Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which is that of 1999, has been one topical matter of concern in the assessment of thoughts over the prevailing state of nation. Calls for review of the legal document have over time been taken too lightly. However, the heightening of socio-economic and political turbulence colliding with several defecting factors emanating from what has been perceived to be ‘counterproductive offshoots’ of antiquarian structures which are by and large hostile to present realities, have brought the reason for thoughtful considerations over the prevailing constitutional architecture of the Federation.
Arguments over the perceptional categorisation of the 1999 constitution as a mere legal document handed over by the military juntas which never had the interest of national development at heart, have been longed asserted as justifications for the need to attend to the review of the constitution. Moves towards the perceptional call by the immediate past administration, brought into play the convening of a national conference tagged the “2014 Confab”. However, since the administration failed to secure a second term, the conference which gulped enormous public funds was only reduced to the fate of political leanings and as a result swept under the carpet. Calls upon calls on the present administration to revisit the resolutions of the 2014 conference have only fallen into deaf ears.
However, the collision of brewing storms of several wings of turbulence offshooting from structural decay, has placed a reality before the Country necessitating the review of the legal document; a failure of which may lead to catastrophic outcomes for the Federation. The prevailing realities before the Federation is one demanding a necessity of structural redefinitions, finding expression from the significance of institutional reformations defined by constitutional amendments. Hence, the essence of a constitutional review has become one of necessity, than importance or choice. The subject has thus, become a matter of no alternative if peace, development, and order would be restored back to the Country, against the rising uproar of anarchy working to establish footholds across the Federation.
This realty has become dawn on the National Assembly with recent moves driven towards reviewing the 1999 legal document. The Nigerian Senate had recently disclosed the convening of a national public hearing on the review of the 1999 Constitution slated to hold from Thursday, 3rd, to Friday, 4th, of June in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja. The Senate President, Lawan who made the announcement on Tuesday, during plenary in a letter addressed to him by the Chairman of the Constitution Review Committee, Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege, had said that the two-day National Public Hearing on proposals to alter the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, is scheduled to hold at the African Hall of the International Conference Centre (ICC), Abuja. Lawan who described the zonal public hearings held across the six geo-political zones of the Country as “quite successful,” appealed to Nigerians to seize the opportunity provided by the national public hearing to state their positions on issues that would improve the quality of governance.
He was quoted: “I want to also appeal to Nigerians to take the opportunity of the national public hearing that will start on Thursday. This is an effort that the National Assembly, particularly the Senate is attached to. We believe that we must do whatever is necessary to provide a platform for Nigerians to air their views, give their positions and canvass for whatever they feel would make our Country better, and make governance more efficient and successful. As I said before, we have no pre-conceived positions on anything and, therefore, this is the time for our citizens to take the opportunity.”
Such matters as the cost of governance, fiscal federalism, restructuring, state police, resource control, judicial reforms, among several others, are salient subjects which the subsisting Constitution appears to be hostile against, in the light of recent realities. Such should naturally be top on the ladder of discourse. The call for the devolution of power with parameters of decentralisation has been on the top burner as a matter of necessity to give expression to such fundamentals as political-economic restructuring, state police and independence of the arms of government, which have been posited to be sine qua non to addressing the turbulence of insecurity, economic depression and recession among other socio-economic deficiencies vitiating the Country presently.
Hence, the call for what has been described as “True Federalism” has been on the canvassing ladder of perspective as a subject demanding institutional redefinition from modification of constitutional provisions, which are counterproductive to the operational reality of such structures as the case is in well established Federal Countries of the world. In this light, the classification of Nigeria as a Federal State has been argued to be deficient to the degree that the institutional structures bend largely towards a Unitary formation where over centralisation of power have weakened the Federating components (States). Hence, acrimonies over state policing, devolution of power, and political-economic restructuring, among other related subjects, have been of serious concern.
The subject of cost of governance has recently joined the train of notations among discourse on the woes ravaging the Federation. The concern has attracted reverberating echoes, particularly in the face of revenue shortfalls owing to dwindling global oil prices. In this light, several calls on the necessity to redefine institutional structures of governance to address the prevailing profligacy profile of running governance in the Federation have become sacrosanct. The argument has been premised on the necessity to streamline governance patterns with parameters of frugality, as well as unifying instruments to eliminate duplications. One of such institutions where call has been made in this regard, is the National Assembly which in the Country constitutes a bicameral formation. The propositions for a Unicameral system have been posited by some stakeholders as a prudent arrangement to further downsize the cost of governance in the Federation. Giving perspective to this, Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, had on Tuesday, advocated the scrapping of the Senate, proposing for an arrangement where each zones would have equal number of four representatives at the National Assembly. Akeredolu who was represented by his Deputy, Mr Lucky Aiyedatiwa, made the postulation at the Akure Centre of the Southwest Zonal Public Hearing, organised by the House of Representatives Special Committee on Constitution Review. According to him, the Federation should consider dropping the current bicameral structure of the National Assembly, for a unicameral arrangement.
He was quoted: “The membership of the Assembly should be part time. No member should earn allowances not known to the Revenue Mobilisation and Allocation Committee, and the people they claim to serve. Legislators should earn under a uniform salary structure. Allowance peculiarities must not be about obscenity. The Senate should be scrapped. The House of Representatives too should not be unwieldy. A maximum of four representatives should come from each Zone.”
According to Akeredolu, the constitution review is an important assignment which must be undertaken with all seriousness. He asserted that revenue generation and allocation must reflect the extent to which a state participated in the economy. He was quoted further: “Ministries, departments and agencies must be pruned to reflect the socio-economic realities of the moment. The government at the centre must divest itself of this self-inflicted heavy burden, for effective and impactful performance.”
The bank of arguments over several subjects which provision as reflected for in the 1999 constitution demands modifying review, is endless. Hence, the subject of modification of the constitutional document determining the navigating patterns of the workings of the Federation is sine qua non. In fact, such amendments should largely in degree, be overhauling in nature to address the collision of structural decay which have been nursing strings of turbulence vitiating the Federation most recently. The perceptional manifestations of these deficiencies are to a large degree, the reflection of archaic patterns which are hostile to satisfy realities of present demands.
It is thus, imperative for Nigerians to take advantage of the constitutional review to press home enlightened perceptions over national matters of premium importance, which by and large bear significance towards the unity, growth, development and progress of the Federation. It is therefore, essential that the disposition towards the constitutional review be one of sincerity of purpose towards the best interest of the Federation. Achieving this, would thoroughly demand firm submissions from the citizenry. It is therefore paramount for all Nigerians — the general public, civil society organisations, Non Governmental Organisations, Human Right Groups, Socio-cultural and Political groups among others, to demonstrate nationalistic ideology towards the review of the constitution. The active participation of all well meaning Nigerians is significant to guide against apathy which for years has been exploited by opportunist elements who will grasp every space to their advantage.
