No doubt, despite going through many reviews, the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has often been criticized as an instrument bequeathed to Nigeria by the military.
Notwithstanding, the National Assembly has not relented at getting the task of delivering a new constitution done for the country, with a focus on addressing various issues, including federal structure and power devolution, local government autonomy, and strengthening the electoral process.
Interestingly, in a bold move, Governors Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo, Ademola Adeleke of Osun, and Biodun Oyebanji of Ekiti have jointly advocated the need for true federalism and state police in the ongoing constitutional review process.
Speaking at the South-West Centre B Public Hearing of the House of Representatives Committee on Constitution Review in Akure, the Ondo State capital, the governors said the current centralized policing structure is unsustainable due to growing insecurity in the country, citing the success of the Amotekun Corps in community policing, deterrence, and intelligence gathering.
The governors also called for a review of the revenue allocation formula, suggesting that states should receive not less than 50% of revenue from the federation. This, they argued, would enable states to harness their resources and revenues for local development.
Specifically, Governor Aiyedatiwa advocated for a constitutional amendment to establish state police, citing the success of the Amotekun Corps in community policing, deterrence, and intelligence gathering.
He also called for a review of the revenue allocation formula, suggesting that states should receive not less than 50% of revenue from the federation.
“Ondo State aligns with the progressive aspirations of the South-West Geo-political Zone in advocating for true federalism that reflects socio-political, cultural and economic realities of the federating units.
“This would be in tandem with true fiscal federalism where states have full control over their resources and revenues, while remitting about 40% of their revenues to the Federal Government.
“Still on fiscal federalism, it will serve the cause of fairness and justice to have a review of the current revenue allocation formula which is skewed in favour of the federal government. Ondo State is of the opinion that not less than 50% of revenue from the federation should be allocated to the states”, he noted.
Aiyedatiwa further proposed that Section 44(3) of the Constitution be amended to remove control over minerals, mineral oils, and natural gas from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent Legislative List. This, he said, would enable state governments to harness their mineral wealth for local development.
“It is an understatement that State Governments and the people experience a lot of agonies from the activities of miners, including illegal miners, quarries and others that engage in mineral exploration activities. This is because State Governments have little or no control over this sector.
“It hinders State Governments, especially oil-rich States from harnessing their mineral wealth for local development, while illegal mining continues to flourish due to weak Federal Government oversight and poor local enforcement mechanisms.”
Creation of More States, LCDAs
Aiyedatiwa further said the State is not opposed to the creation of new States as requested in some of the proposed bills, but strongly oppose excising any part of its territory to merge with any new state or join an existing one.
According to him: “It is also of interest to the government and people of Ondo State that additional local governments be created in the State, just as Lagos State Local Development Council Areas (LCDAs) are being proposed for inclusion in the Constitution as fully-fledged Local Government Areas.
“In Ondo State, we have functional 33 LCDAs duly created by the State Government. We strongly advocate that the proposed bill be expanded and these 33 LCDAs in Ondo State be recognised as fully-fledged Local Governments in the First Schedule of the Constitution.”
Electoral Reform/Electronic Voting
Deputy Governor of Osun state, Kolawole Adeusi, who presented the position paper of the state on behalf of Governor Ademola Adeleke highlighted the need for electoral reform, particularly, the need to reduce the cost of conducting elections in Nigeria and advocated for electronic voting.
His words: “The cost of governance is too high. Make it less attractive so that it doesn’t become a matter of life and death”.
He equally spoke on the importance of decentralizing the government.”
Resource Control
His Ekiti State counterpart, BiodunOyebanji who was represented by the Attorney General of the state, DayoApata (SAN) further proposed that Section 44(3) of the Constitution be amended to remove control over minerals, mineral oils, and natural gas from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent Legislative List.
The governor who called for equal political representation for women and persons with disabilities (PWDs) equally asked for total ban on the movement of cattle and livestock in addressing constant feud between herders and farmers in the country.
He added that the review should accommodate formal recognition of traditional rulers in the constitution.
NSCDC’s Calls for Full Constitutional Recognition
The push for true federalism and state police is not limited to the governors. The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has also made a strong case for full constitutional recognition, arguing that it would lay to rest repeated clamouring and agitation for a merger with another agency.
NSCDC Commandant-General, Ahmed Abubakar Audi, noted that the corps has made giant strides in securing lives and property, including securing the conviction of thousands of criminals, recommending licences for Private Guard Companies, and resolving over 120,000 conflicts.
The NSCDC boss called on the National Assembly to grant full constitutional recognition to the corps in line with its original mandate of securing lives and property, especially the nation’s critical assets and infrastructure.
Audi requested for a Section of the Constitution that will clearly spell out the corps’ role of protecting the Critical National Assets and Infrastructure; regulating private security practice; providing Public Security Education; engaging in conflict resolution for willing parties; securing agro-allied activities/investments; performing any other functions that may be assigned to it by the President and Acts of the National Assembly.
The Commandant-General who was represented by Commandant Hammed Abodunrin traced the origin of the corps to the Nigerian Civil War era when it emerged as a voluntary quasi-military organisation to assist the civil populace by providing security education, rescuing the vulnerable, digging trenches and safeguarding critical national assets while the battle lasted.
Talking about the legal backing of the security agency, the Commandant-General noted that the National Assembly passed an Act in 2003 to change it to a full-fledged federal security outfit, adding that more responsibilities were also assigned by various national policies, including the National Security Strategy (NSS) of 2019 and the National Protection Policy and Strategy for Critical National Assets and Infrastructure (NPPS-CNAI) of 2024 recently signed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The NSCDC praised the National Assembly for granting it power to bear arms in 2007 and the Nigerian Army for providing the first 5,000 units of arms and ammunition to the corps and training its personnel at no cost.
“It is noteworthy, that an organization that started with only 12,512 employees today is growing to about 70,000 officers and men. It is a thing of joy that, with your singular worthy action, the NSCDC today is a registered member of the International Civil Defence Organisation (ICDO) headquartered in Geneva.”
The NSCDC boss, however, lamented that Section 214 of the 1999 Constitution which states that there shall be only one police force in the country has been misinterpreted over the years, leading to an unhealthy relationship between the corps and the police force.
He added that the appointment of a retired police officer as Acting Commandant of the corps at inception to mentor the personnel also contributed to a misunderstanding of the role of the NSCDC.
“This led to untended consequences of vigorous and repeated attempt of integration instead of collaboration as the expected mentees are subsequently being treated as competitors. It is no longer news that NSCDC personnel are repeatedly harassed, brutalized, arrested, detained and even killed for doing what is always referred to as constitutionally guaranteed exclusive police jobs.
“Sometimes, NSCDC personnel and their commanders were ordered to produce the Act that empower them to be carrying out security and safety assignments. Even as brothers and sisters that share the same goal of protecting lives and property, things always change when it comes to the issue of constitution.”
Audi told the House of Representatives Committee that over the years the NSCDC had made giant strides like securing the conviction of thousands of criminals, including vandals; recommending licences for Private Guard Companies (PGCs) after due monitoring, training and inspections; resolving over 120,000 conflicts that could have led to further awaiting trial induced-congestions; destroying hundreds of illegal refineries and mining sites as well as prosecuting the operators; and performing rescue operations during national emergencies; participate in various joint operations particularly with the military.
On his part, National President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Alhassan Yahaya, called for the constitutional protection of media professionals and the establishment of a media bailout fund to support struggling independent media organizations across the country.
Represented by the Ondo State NUJ Chairman, Leke Adegbite, Yahaya, stressed the urgent need to address the growing threats to press freedom, journalist safety, and the economic viability of independent media outlets in Nigeria.
Yahaya, therefore, urged the federal lawmakers to align Nigeria’s press freedom protections with international best practices, citing examples of democracies that have adopted media bailout strategies to preserve journalism as a public good.
Recognition of Traditional Institutions
Representing traditional rulers, the Olowo of Owo and the Chairman, Ondo State Council of Obas, Oba Gbadegesin Ogunoye, advocated for the constitutional recognition of traditional rulers and their inclusion in policy making processes.
Earlier, Hon James Faleke, Chairman of Southwest Centre B (Ondo, Osun, Ekiti) of the House of Representatives Committee on Constitution Review said the next step of the committee will be in alignment with the wishes of the people of Nigeria.
He stressed that all the position papers will be meticulously scrutinized for the ultimate betterment of the country.
The push for true federalism and state police is a significant development in Nigeria’s constitutional review process. However, stakeholders believe that as the constitutional review process continues, it remains to be seen whether these proposals will be adopted.
Suffice to say, one thing is clear: the push for true federalism and state police and resource control is gaining momentum, and it may just be the key to unlocking Nigeria’s full potential.
This is because, as the country continues to grapple with the challenges of governance and security, it is clear that a more effective and responsive system is needed.
The proposals put forward by the governors, paramilitary organizations, traditional institutions and other stakeholders offer a promising solution, and it will be interesting to see how they are received by the National
