Speaker says National Assembly will support restructuring

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, has said agitations and calls for restructuring in Nigeria can only be actualized through alteration and amendment of the 1999 Constitution.

Speaking at a public hearing organised by the House Ad hoc Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution at the National Assembly, Dogara also revealed that the parliament will not constitute a stumbling block to the wishes and aspirations of Nigerians for genuine changes in the Constitution.

The Speaker explained that the process of amending the Constitution by the 8th House of Representatives is in phases and that it is a continuous exercise as envisaged under Section 9 of the Constitution.

He said, "Agitations for restructuring of the Governance framework for Nigeria can only be done through alterations of the Constitution. I wish to say, that the House of Representatives and indeed the National Assembly is ready to do its part in terms of amending the Constitution when consensus have been reached on any matter by stakeholders and Nigerian citizens."

The public hearing was organised to get stakeholders' input on "A Bill For An Act to Alter The Constitution Of The Federal Republic Of Nigeria, 1999 (s Amended) To Reflect The Proposals Initiated By The Judiciary (HB858)" which was presented to the House by Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice W. S. N. Onnoghen, CFR and is said to be a consolidation of all the recommendations requiring Constitution alterations by Heads of Courts and Judicial Bodies. The primary purpose is to alter the provisions of the Constitution to effect some Judicial reforms.

"Furthermore, we note that the age limit for various offices currently contained in the Constitution is the minimum not maximum. The wisdom of raising the minimum ages for various offices should be appraised further to ensure that brilliant and exceptional persons are not shut out on grounds of age," Dogara said.

Dogara expressed satisfaction with the various recommendations that are geared towards reducing the time for litigation in our courts and every effort should be made to adopt and reflect them in the final amendments.