Sunday Aborisade x-rays hurdles before the 10th Senate as it commences another round of constitution review amid familiar beginning and candid optimism
In July 2024, Nigeria’s 10th Senate revived the constitutional amendment exercise, which is a process as old as the 1999 Constitution itself, through its Constitution Review Committee, chaired by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin.
This time, however, the ambition appears larger, and the stakes, higher. The Committee is reviewing 87 priority bills that cut across critical national concerns: local government autonomy, state policing, judicial and electoral reform, fiscal federalism, gender inclusion, and procedural governance.
The importance of this moment cannot be overstated. Since 1999, successive amendment efforts have suffered from a chronic lack of direction, elite dominance, and meagre outcomes.
Investigations revealed that between 2011 and today, over ₦12.85 billion has been spent on constitutional amendments—with limited tangible results.
The infamous failed third-term agenda of 2006, and the lacklustre 2011 and 2021 exercises, have left many Nigerians skeptical, even cynical. This Senate must not only confront this legacy—it must transcend it.
There are signs that the 10th Senate has learned from past missteps. For the first time, the constitutional amendment process is guided by a clear timeline and governance structure.
Zonal public hearings are already underway, with plenary debates slated for October, 2025. Voting is scheduled for mid-October, with transmission to state houses of assembly before the end of year 2025.
This level of structure is a welcome departure from previous attempts where ₦1 billion annual budgets often evaporated into process-heavy yet progress-light meetings.
Unlike previous narrow focuses, this round takes a broad and inclusive sweep. Highlights include: local government autonomy, offering fiscal and political independence; state policing, a long-standing demand amid rising insecurity and financial autonomy for state judiciary and legislature, to reinforce checks and balances.
It also focused on judicial reforms, including gender balance, virtual proceedings, and hearing timelines.
Electoral reforms, like e-voting and independent candidacy; affirmative action, notably the proposed—but rejected—35% women’s quota in ministerial appointments.
Procedural accountability, including stricter executive assent timelines and ministerial nomination deadlines.These efforts reflect a wider vision for a more functional, equitable federation.
Unlike past top-down efforts, this exercise claims a bottom-up orientation. Zonal consultations are being held with traditional rulers, civil society organisations, women’s groups, youth forums, and academia.
Scholars and observers have lauded this move as the most inclusive public consultation architecture yet seen in Nigeria’s constitutional history. However, inclusion must go beyond form, it must influence substance.
Observers are of the opinion that despite commendable structure and scope, the 10th Senate must not underestimate the formidable headwinds that have historically derailed constitutional reform in Nigeria.
They had noted that the best reforms risk death by decentralization. Most constitutional amendments require 24 out of 36 state assemblies to pass. This is an obstacle that has repeatedly crushed past efforts. In 2022, for example, only 11 of 44 bills passed this hurdle.
Amendments are often hostage to sectional interests. Power blocs treat the process as political poker rather than democratic engineering. Without counterweights, elite dominance will again dilute national consensus.
Civil society groups have justifiably labelled previous constitutional exercises as “legislative jamborees.” because the billions spent yielded disproportionately little reform, leading to public disillusionment. If the 10th Senate does not produce results, it risks reinforcing this perception.
Tokenism, weak public communication, rushed committee work, and misplaced priorities—such as immunity clauses and self-serving provisions—have derailed many previous cycles. Without attention to quality, quantity means little.
To truly rise above its predecessors, the 10th Senate must adopt bold strategies in six transformative areas:
Success must go beyond passage at the federal level. It must include acceptance by state assemblies, implementation timelines, and real-life impacts. Constitutional reform must be seen not just as a legislative milestone but a governance tool.
Instead of lobbying for passage after federal voting, the Senate must build consensus ahead of time. Governors, Speakers, and local influencers should be part of zonal hearings. Outreach materials should be published in major regional languages. Respected political and civic leaders should be lobbied within their states for passage and public buy-in.
The 10th Senate must organise more than town hall meetings in state capitals. It must engage rural communities, urban poor, and marginalized groups through town hall meetings in remote local government areas with live translation and moderated panels.
It should ensure ethnic, gender, and geographic balance in all consultation fora and invite independent constitutional experts to evaluate drafts for bias or imbalance.
On local government reform, states should be stopped from hijacking Local Government funds and appointments, an action that often undermines grassroots development.
Section 7 of the 1999 constitution should be amended to grant Local Governments full fiscal and political independence, with direct access to federal allocations guaranteed by the Constitution—not left to executive discretion.
Since insecurity remains localized and the police force remains centralized, the ongoing amendments should enshrine the creation of state police in the Constitution, setting federal oversight standards, minimum training protocols, and a collaborative funding framework.
On judicial reform, legal experts have recommended that the constitution should mandate timelines for adjudication, direct budget allocations to judicial councils, and legalize virtual court proceedings.
It has also been recommended that independent candidacy should be legalised and that the proposed amendments should, mandate a phased e-voting pilot, and clarify INEC’s powers to deregister parties that fail to meet standards.
It has also been suggested that to achieve gender equity inclusion in the constitution, gender-based campaign finance support, party-level reserved slots, and state-based gender targets in councils and political appointments, should be specifically spelt out in the proposed amendments.
Describing the exercise as a “national conversation,” Senator Barau, in a statement, last week emphasized the importance of broad-based public engagement in determining the future of the nation.
“This process is not just a legal exercise—it is a national dialogue. We are opening the doors of reform to every Nigerian, from civil society to community leaders, from the professional class to everyday citizens,” he said.
The Constitution Review Committee Chairman reaffirmed the National Assembly’s commitment to a participatory constitutional reform process that reflects the aspirations of all Nigerians.
His words: “We’re taking the Constitution Review Committee to the people — to their doorsteps. This is the beauty of democracy. We want Nigerians to ventilate their views directly”.
The zonal hearings, he said, will be held in Ikot Ekpene (South-South), Lagos (South-West), Enugu (South-East), Jos (North-Central), Maiduguri (North-East), and Kaduna (North-West), with each zone chaired by a ranking Senator from the region.
Barau urged Nigerians from all walks of life — professionals, academics, and grassroots participants — to actively engage with the constitutional review process to shape the future of the country.
Clerk of the Committee, Dr. Innocent Mebiri, has also urged interested stakeholders to access the full list of bills and contact designated zonal clerks for participation at the hearings.
As Nigeria marks 26 years of uninterrupted democratic governance, the 2025 Constitution Review stands poised to shape a new national consensus, one that could redefine governance, security, and citizenship for generations to come.
The ongoing constitution reform moment is Nigeria’s best chance to finally get it right. But it could also be its last for a generation. If mishandled, it will reinforce citizen apathy, deepen regional divides, and worsen democratic fatigue.
The 10th Senate must demonstrate political courage, administrative transparency, and citizen-centered design. It must listen more than it talks. Act more than it promises.
For the Nigerian people, for whom governance often feels distant and opaque, this is not just a legislative exercise. It is a democratic litmus test.
Let us hope it does not end, yet again, as just another expensive rehearsal.
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