Rt Hon Benjamin Kalu, Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution and Deputy Speaker of the House, revealed on Friday during a two-day retreat in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State that none of the 31 state creation requests met the constitutional requirements.
The retreat, held from February 20 to 23, 2025, served as a forum for reviewing pending amendment bills and strategizing the next steps in the constitutional review process. Organized by the 10th House in collaboration with the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre and supported by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office, the event underscored the importance of state creation in Nigeria’s governance discourse.
Kalu acknowledged that while the requests reflected the aspirations of various communities, they failed to satisfy the legal criteria, prompting the committee to extend the submission deadline to March 5, 2025—a deadline that could be further extended depending on the retreat’s outcomes.
He also disclosed that the House Committee is currently reviewing 151 constitutional amendment bills aimed at refining governance in Nigeria, with some bills advancing to the second reading while others remain at the first stage. Kalu pointed out that duplication poses a major challenge, noting that several bills address similar issues under different sponsors, which led the committee to categorize them into thematic areas such as federal structure and power devolution, local government autonomy, public revenue, fiscal federation, revenue allocation, Nigerian police and security architecture, comprehensive judicial reforms, electoral reforms, gender issues and human rights, and state creation.
He further emphasized that any proposed changes to the Electoral Act requiring constitutional alterations must pass through the committee, stating that a proactive and cooperative approach is essential for seamless legislative processes and comprehensive legal reforms.
As part of the next phase of the review, the committee has scheduled zonal and national public hearings across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones—North Central (Nasarawa and Niger States), North East (Borno and Gombe States), North West (Kaduna and Sokoto States), South East (Enugu and Imo States), South-South (Bayelsa and Cross River States), and South West (Lagos and Ondo States)—to give Nigerians an opportunity to contribute to the amendment process. Kalu urged lawmakers to work diligently and objectively so that the final amendments reflect the will of the Nigerian people, insisting that the voices of Nigerians be integral to the constitutional reforms.
Expressing confidence in the process, he promised a transparent and inclusive review that would strengthen Nigeria’s democracy and governance structure. Echoing these sentiments, Mr Clement Nwankwo, Executive Director of PLAC, expressed delight in supporting the committee and confidence that its mandate would be fulfilled within the set timeframe, noting that his team of co-consultants had been actively meeting to develop suggestions for the committee’s consideration.
