Delegates at the National Constitutional Summit convened by the Eminent Patriots of Nigeria, a leading assembly of elder statesmen, intellectuals, and civic leaders, have called on the Independent National Electoral Commission to organise elections for a Constituent Assembly tasked with drafting a new people-driven democratic constitution.
The group also rejected the 1999 Constitution (as amended), stating that it lacks legitimacy, having been imposed by the military regime.
Reading the summit’s communiqué on Friday in Abuja, the Chairman, former Commonwealth Secretary-General Emeka Anyaoku, said the delegates proposed the establishment of state police and the adoption of true federalism as key steps toward resolving Nigeria’s pressing national issues.
He disclosed that the delegates believe Nigeria requires a complete restructuring and a thorough revision of its current constitutional framework and system of governance.
Reading from the communique, Anyaoku stated, ‘The summit agreed that the 1999 Constitution (as amended) is deeply flawed and unrepresentative in that it was not made by the people and is inadequate for addressing the countrys pluralism and the various challenges confronting Nigeria as a nation.
‘Therefore, delegates agreed that there is a need for a new people-driven, inclusive, democratic Constitution anchored on true federalism.
‘For stability and maximal development, the Constitution must address Nigeria’s plurality and diversity.
‘Demand for Constituent Assembly: In order to actualise the above and other reforms agreed to at this summit, the delegates agreed that the President be requested to introduce an Executive Bill to the National Assembly to empower the Independent National Electoral Commission to organise elections to a national Constituent Assembly.
‘This Assembly shall be made up of delegates elected on a non-partisan basis as well as representatives of special interest groups
‘The Constituent Assembly shall be responsible for actualising a peoples democratic Constitution that will be subjected to a referendum of the Nigerian people before it is assented to by the President to midwife a peoples democratic Constitution that will be subjected to a referendum of the Nigerian people before it is assented to by the President’.
The communiqué stated that the summit also agreed on the need to restructure the current six geopolitical zones to promote the establishment of a genuinely federal system of government.
Anyaoku continued, ‘The summit calls for an immediate constitutional framework that will return Nigeria to a truly federal system of government where the federating units will enjoy their autonomy as obtained in the First Republic and other genuine democracies of the World.
‘Federal System of government: The summit agreed that the current presidential system of government is too expensive, prone to abuse, constitutes a hindrance to people’s welfare and a major threat to the future of democracy in Nigeria.
‘The current political reality is that too much power is concentrated at the centre. Quite enormous powers are currently concentrated in the presidency. The reduction of the enormity will discourage autocratic tendencies and encourage inter-institutional checks and balances.
‘The patriot, therefore, recommends the devolution of powers from the centre to the federating units. The summit agreed that a two-chamber federal legislature is unsustainably expensive for Nigeria to maintain.
‘The summit, therefore, recommends a more appropriate, cost-effective system’.
It also expressed concern over the highly centralised judicial system, stating that it has severely hampered the delivery of justice.
The summit proposed separating the roles of the Attorney-General of the Federation from that of the Minister of Justice, as well as dividing the offices of Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice at the state level, noting that it would allow for the appointment of Attorneys-General who are independent and not politically affiliated.
The communiqué recommended that each federating unit should have its own courts up to the Court of Appeal, while the Supreme Court handles only major constitutional and intergovernmental disputes.
On electoral reforms, the communique stated, ‘Among other reforms, the summit resolved, therefore, that all elections be conducted in a single day, as this is cheaper, time saving and less prone to fraud. Brazil and Ghana are good examples of countries that have adopted single-day elections.
‘The summit demands an amendment to the Electoral Act and the relevant sections of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) for the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System and electronic transmission of results in real time to be made mandatory.
‘The new Constitution should include a provision for independent candidacy for aspirants who do not wish to run for elections on a party basis.
‘The summit recommends that once a person is elected on the platform of a political party, he or she shall not defect to another political party till the tenure is over.
‘Where this takes place, such seat shall automatically and unconditionally be declared vacant and such person shall forthwith cease to hold the office.
‘Cost-cutting is a time-tested solution to bankruptcy. The present pseudo-federal system is too large and unmanageable. It takes so much to run while the result is over-bloated bureaucracies and political structures at both state and federal levels’.
On security, the summit also affirmed the need for equity in the statutory rotation of headship of national security agencies among the sub-national.
It added, ‘The summit agreed that given her pluralism, Nigeria shall in perpetuity remain a secular state. Both the central and the sub-national governments shall do nothing to detract from this secularity.
‘The summit recommends the urgency of a legislative framework that would enable the creation of state police to tackle the pervasive internal security issues across the geopolitical zones’.
