Participants at the National Constitutional Summit have called for elections into a Constituent Assembly to draft a new constitution, rejecting the 1999 Constitution as inadequate and imposed.

The summit, held in Abuja and convened by the Eminent Patriots of Nigeria, brought together retired statesmen, legal scholars, former lawmakers, and civic actors. It concluded with a communiqué demanding wide-ranging reforms aimed at overhauling Nigeria’s governance framework.

Emeka Anyaoku, former Commonwealth Secretary-General and chair of the summit, said the delegates were unanimous in their position that Nigeria’s current constitution lacks legitimacy.

“The 1999 Constitution is flawed, as it does not reflect the will of the Nigerian people,” Anyaoku said while presenting the summit’s resolutions. He explained that the constitution’s military origins, its centralising tendencies, and its inability to accommodate Nigeria’s diversity make it unfit for purpose.

The summit proposed that President Bola Tinubu initiate an Executive Bill to enable the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct non-partisan elections into a national Constituent Assembly. This body, the delegates said, should include elected representatives and appointees from civil society, labour, women, youth, and other interest groups. The assembly’s outcome, according to the communiqué, would be subjected to a national referendum before presidential assent.

Delegates also advocated for restructuring Nigeria into a more authentic federal system. They argued that returning to a model akin to that of the First Republic would allow sub-national entities to exercise meaningful autonomy.

According to the communiqué, “The current concentration of power in the presidency distorts the federal balance and stifles democratic accountability.” The summit recommended devolving power to federating units and reviewing the cost of governance, including streamlining the bicameral legislature.

Concerns about the judiciary were also prominent. The summit recommended separating the offices of the Attorney-General and the Minister of Justice at the federal level, and similarly separating the roles at the state level.

It further proposed allowing state judicial systems to operate up to the appellate level, with the Supreme Court reserved for major constitutional and inter-governmental cases.

On electoral reforms, the delegates urged that all elections be held on the same day to cut costs and reduce electoral malpractice. They cited Brazil and Ghana as examples of countries where this model is effective.

They also recommended constitutional amendments to make electronic voter accreditation and result transmission mandatory, and called for provisions enabling independent candidacies. Furthermore, the summit proposed that elected officials who defect from their parties mid-term should automatically lose their seats.

“The new Constitution should include a provision for independent candidacy for aspirants who do not wish to run for elections on a party basis.” it added. “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.

In its recommendations on internal security, the summit endorsed the creation of state police as a necessary measure to address widespread insecurity, while insisting that national security appointments should rotate equitably across Nigeria’s regions.

The delegates reiterated the need to preserve Nigeria’s secular status, warning that any actions by government authorities that erode the principle of religious neutrality would be detrimental to national unity.

“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 communiqué read.

“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.”

The summit was attended by prominent Nigerians, including former Ogun State Governor Gbenga Daniel, constitutional lawyer Mike Ozekhome (SAN), and former Foreign Affairs Minister Senator Ike Nwachukwu. (The Guardian)