Deputy senate president accuses state assemblies of frustrating constitution amendment process

The deputy senate president and committee chairman on constitution amendment, Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege has accused state houses of assembly of frustrating the constitution amendment process.  He made this known at a press conference in Abuja today. He said only 11 of Nigeria’s 36 state legislatures have considered and voted on the 44 constitution amendment bills passed by the National Assembly earlier in the year.

They are Abia, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Delta, Edo, Kaduna, Katsina, Kogi, Lagos, Ogun and Osun states.

This comes about six months after the bills were passed and transmitted to the states for concurrence.

deputy senate president and committee chairman on constitution amendment, Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege with members of the sub-committee

Twenty-five other states have failed to consider the bills stating that the states have threatened to take no action on the bills unless four more constitutional amendment bills are considered and passed by the National Assembly.

They are establishment of State Police, State Judicial Council, Streamline the procedure for removing Presiding Officers of State Houses of Assembly and, Institutionalize Legislative Bureaucracy in the Constitution.

These demands were contained in a letter from the Conference of Speakers to the National Assembly Joint Committee on Constitutional Review.

Deputy senate president Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege

He also accused some state governors of interfering in the affairs of State Houses of Assembly and turning some of its lawmakers to puppets for their selfish gains.

44 out of 68 bills were passed by the Senate and House of Representatives on 1 March and transmitted to the State Houses of Assembly.

However, Constitution amendment bills require the approval of two thirds (24) of the 36 State Houses of Assembly before they can be presented for the president’s assent.

Dolupo Balogun

Written by BoomRadioNG