Constitution Review: Senators Disagree on State Police…

Clamour for local government autonomy, state police, single term tenure for president and governors, rotational presidency, and regionalism dominate debate among Nigerians as National Assembly commences work on the 1999 constitution amendments exercise, reports Sunday Aborisade.

Members of the Senate Committee on Constitution Review led by the Deputy Senate President, Senator Jibrin Barau, in collaboration with the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), recently concluded a two-day retreat in Kano to set the stage for the exercise which would end in December, 2025.

Some of the critical constitutional issues slated for review included the state police, state creation, diaspora voting, gender equity and full autonomy for local governments, among others.

Members of the Senate Ad-hoc Committee were divided on some of the issues during their different engagements with newsmen at the sidelines of the retreat.

Surprisingly many Nigerians who had bared their minds on the assignment of the federal lawmakers had suggested issues that must be included in their agenda if the country must truly move forward.

For instance, leaders of various socio-political and cultural organisations from different geo-political zones of the country and eminent individuals had argued that Nigeria could only achieve greatness as a nation if it reverted to the regional system of government which was practiced in the defunct First Republic.

Some had equally called for the inclusion of a single term tenure for president and governors in the ongoing amendment into the nation’s laws.

Similarly, there were also calls for the inclusion of rotational presidency in the constitution so that all participating political parties would pick their presidential candidates from the zone, whose turn it is, to produce the president.

At the end of their two-day retreat  in Kano, the Senators unanimously agreed to include full autonomy for local governments in the nation’s constitution. The federal lawmakers nevertheless, expressed divergent views on the issue of state police.

At the forum, Senators from the South-East and South- South geo-political zones advocated for the creation of additional states.

Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele; a former Chief Whip of the red chamber,  Senator Ali Ndume; Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa; Senators Abdulfatai Buhari, Osita Izunaso and Ned Nwoko, in their various submissions insisted that full autonomy for local governments was long overdue.

The senators were however divided on the issue of state police. Those in support said insecurity would be tackled effectively with state police while others said political opponents would be targeted by state governors.

Senator Sani Musa who supported the idea said, “when we are talking about State Police, every state in this country is facing one insecurity or the other and I believe that if we look at the issue of State Police, it’s good for us.”

However, Senator Ali Ndume said what the country needed was to increase the manpower of the police and improve their welfare for effective policing. State Police, he stressed, would be abused by the governors.

He said, “Personally, I don’t support state police. Right now, we have less than 400,000 Police personnel nationwide, and you are clamouring for creation of state police, why don’t you increase the number and Train, Equip, Arm and Motivate them, what I call TEAM.”

Both Senators Ned Nwoko and Osita Izunaso, maintained that the creation of Orlu State in the South-East and Anioma State in the South-South geopolitical zones were long overdue.

Southern and Northern Senators however disagreed over the agitation for the return of Nigeria to the regional form of government.

While Senators from the northern part of the country vehemently opposed it, those from Southern Nigeria, described it as a welcome development that would improve the economy, tackle insecurity and fast-track infrastructural development.

The Red Chamber through the Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, in his comments, assured Nigerians that issue of regionalism was not part of the ongoing review of nation’s constitution.

A ranking Senator from Bauchi Central, Abdul Ningi, told journalists that his people would never support the idea because they did not enjoy any form of development when the system of government was practiced in the defunct First Republic.

Ningi said, “I have heard so much about regional government  or federalism and I have heard people going about, canvassing for such ideas.

“For a start, no matter how you see it, the current document (1999 Constitution) is still the grundnorm. It has also stipulated how it is going to be amended.

“Having said that, it is also imperative to also know that it isn’t just enough for anybody to come and say he is the representative of one ethnic group or another at the National Assembly.

“The question that arises is, when was this mandate canvassed? When was it received? You are a representative of a particular ethnic group in Nigeria, at what time were you given mandate to canvass that? The only people that are given this mandate, to look at the Constitution and amend it are of course, members of the National Assembly.

“Therefore, it is important for those who go about selling these ideas, false ideas in my opinion, that there are representatives of the  people. They should let Nigerians know where they are coming from and in whose mandate and when was this mandate given to them.

“We have seen how the regional government was operated in the past. My part of the country that I am representing didn’t enjoy the development of that so-called regional government that was based in Kaduna.

“We aren’t going back there again! I am speaking for my senatorial district. It is either the Nigerian Federation or nothing. We can’t go along, my senatorial district will be satisfied independently with Nigeria, if that is what is required. As far as regional government is concerned, my constituency, my people aren’t for it. What we need is the reform of the current Federal Government structure and  fiscal federalism because there is nothing like true federalism.”

Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa, advised Nigerians against mistaken the establishment of the Zonal development commission for regionalism.

According to him, the various geo-political zonal development commission was strictly for the social and economic development of their areas.

He said, “It is wrong of anybody to think that the development commissions being established for the six geo-political zones is a plan towards regionalism. It is not. Those who are advocating for it should come up with bills through their representatives in the National Assembly and test the popularity of their proposal.”

Similarly, former Senate Leader, Ali Ndume, said the idea of true federalism was no longer fashionable because many countries in Africa had discarded it. He advocated the creation of strong institutions that would enhance good governance and curb corruption and insecurity.

“When the government put these in place, there won’t be clamour for true federalism because there will be justice, equity and fairness in all the regions of the country.”

Also, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TetFund, Senator Muntari Dandutse, representing Katsina South Senatorial District, disagreed with the proponents of regional government.

He said the essence of the ongoing retreat was to improve on the defects and anomaly discovered in the nation’s constitution over the years.

His words, “We should not have myopic thinking about ourselves. There is no section of this country that is not blessed. What is important is that we should have good governance, a credible and responsible accessibility of the resources that we have, because Nigeria is blessed. We have all the comparative advantages that will move this country forward, unless of course we are serious and determined.”

However, the Senator representing Oyo North, Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, disagreed with those condemning the regional system of government.

Buhari said, “Recall that the regions were able to harness their resources in the First Republic. We were able to harness all our resources. There was no dominance of a particular resource(s).

“In those years, the North was known for the pyramid of groundnuts, the South West was known for cocoa, we should be able to do that.

“When you make the center less attractive you cut off corruption. You can’t wipe it off, but you can cut it off,  because there is what is called, watch your team. People will watch their team within their locality or within their region”.

Asked whether the South West region had a specific agenda for the ongoing constitution review, Buhari said the it would be presented at the appropriate time.

He said, “We don’t want to disclose that agenda yet but we have agreed among ourselves that the person that is going to present that is the Chairman of the South West Forum when the time comes. It will be very unfair for me now as a member to start discussing that.”

However, the Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, said the current system of government could not be changed through constitution amendment.

He said, “There are some decisions in the state of which an executive bill cannot come to the parliament unless there are some political consensus. For me, going back to regional form of governance is something that will go beyond a bill being sponsored, either as a parliament member bill or as an executive bill.

“ It’s also not something that you sit down in a public hearing room and organize a public hearing to take a decision on. An example is when people tell us, oh, you know, you are in parliament. As a parliament, you cannot discard the entire constitution. Nigeria needs a new constitution because this constitution cannot work. It’s easy for people to make such arguments, but that is not something we can sit down in parliament and do.

“So we are not changing the constitution, because that would require a political consensus, and that would also require the buy-in of the Nigerian people themselves.

I mean, why is it so difficult to amend even one section of the constitution, not even talk of discarding the entire constitution? So, to amend a single provision in the constitution today, the National Assembly, all chambers, will have to go through this entire process we are going through, which we go through in every legislative assembly, and many of you have been a part of this process.”

As debate rages on the amendments to the constitution, the Senate adhoc Committee on Constitution Review had disclosed that the National Assembly will produce a new draft bill on further amendments to the 1999 constitution in December, 2025.

Speakers at the event, wanted the proposed reviews to focus on Local Government Autonomy, State Police, women rights and the specific roles for traditional rulers in order to tackle issues of insecurity, among others.

The forum agreed that the National Assembly panels in both chambers should hold joint engagements with the state governors, state assemblies, judiciary, civil society organisations and other critical stakeholders to guide against bills rejection at state levels.

Deputy President of the Senate as Chairman of the Constitution Review panel pledged that the on-going review of the nation’s constitution would meet the wishes and aspirations of the people of the country.

He said, “It an assignment for us to work in synergy with our colleagues and other stakeholders to produce an outstanding report and recommendations, which, of course, will be composed of suggestions and recommendations to the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for further deliberation and approval.

“As we embark on this critical journey, let us remember the timeless values that make nations great: freedom, equality, and justice.

These enduring ideals should guide us through this arduous task. As we consider desirable amendments to our Constitution, I implore that we do so with the utmost care and consideration. Our decisions today will have far-reaching implications for generations to come, and we must ensure that they are in the best interests of all Nigerians.

“To  achieve meaningful reform, we must synergise with our esteemed colleagues in the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee on Constitution Review and collaborate with critical stakeholders, including the executive arm of government, State Governors, State Assemblies, the judiciary, and civil society organisations, to build consensus on contentious issues.

Our collective success hinges on our ability to work together seamlessly, sharing ideas and expertise to develop a report to be submitted to the Senate for further legislative actions. This retreat presents a unique opportunity for constructive good-faith dialogue and collective problem-solving,”  Barau stated.