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Part of a document of the drafted regional government bill went viral on social media on Friday. According to the document it is expected to be passed into law before October 1, 2024.
In the spirit of returning to the Old National Anthem, Dr Akin Fapohunda, a retired director with the federal civil service, has drafted the bill seeking a return to the regional government in Nigeria as it was in 1963.
Part of a document of the drafted bill went viral on social media on Friday and according to the document it is expected to be passed into law before October 1, 2024.
The bill is titled “A Bill for an Act to Substitute the Annexure to Decree 24 of 1999 with a New Governance Model for the Federal Republic of Nigeria”
Speaking with OrderPaper correspondent Lizzy Chirkpi via an audio interview, Mr Fapohunda admitted he is just interested in change.
He said “With the recent change of the National Anthem to the Old which we were singing before 1966, I am thinking we can go to 1963 also let start afresh so that document is on how we can start afresh. So I drafted it, I have been involved in drafting since 2018.
“I have spoken to like two of my House of Representatives members but if I can get one or two Senators who will be interested in making it their own bill, I don’t mind. I do not want to claim any credit. I want it done, that’s all.
“The argument is that Nigeria needs to be decentralised, when it is decentralised Nigerians will still remain the same but have different regions to work within their own methods.
“For example, the North Central zone Niger Kebbi and Kwara and they are mainly Muslims, Taraba, Adamawa, plateau and Benue they are mainly Christians. Why not let them be two regions religion is a factor in Nigeria whether we like it or not so restructuring Nigeria on that basis so the Yoruba will be on their own, the Ijaw’s will be on their own so we will have like 12 regions.”
Meanwhile the House Spokesman, Rep. Akin Rotimi Jr. (APC, Ekiti) in a chat clarified that there is no such bill before the House.
“On this specific memo under reference, Rules and Business and Constitution Review House Committees confirmed there is no such bill/memorandum received before them.”
Rotimi established that there are two routes to making presentations for constitutional amendments.
“One is by any Honourable member proposing an amendment bill, and the second is by memoranda from individuals and groups to the constitution review committee.
“Note that memoranda submitted should eventually come by way of a Bill sponsored by a member of the committee.”
The viral bill document reads “PART I – Preliminaries: WHEREAS Nigeria, its Peoples and Government have been governed under Decree 24 of 1999 that was handed down by the then Military Government without the express consent of the people despite the preamble of ‘We the people.’
“WHEREAS the said Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as Amended) is not autochthonous as it does not evolve from the deliberations and consensus of the Nigerian People.
“WHEREAS the Peoples of Nigeria now desire and effectively demand for a change to a Constitution based on Federal/Regional System of Government.
“WHEREAS the Federal and Regional governments are to operate within the provisions of this Constitution, it is within the discretion of the ethnic blocs within the States that constitutes a given region to aggregate or disaggregate as Provinces, Divisions and Districts, while being in control of their affairs without let or hindrance at whatever level of governance.
“Whereas the 1999 Constitution as amended is a schedule of a military decree now deemed to be an Act of the National Assembly for which the National Assembly have the powers to amend and/or abrogate as expediently.
“Whereas the National Assembly where so necessary and expedient can invoke the doctrine of necessity to resolve any point of law for the good governance of the country Nigeria.
“On PART 11 – Substitution Clause, the drafters proposed that the National Assembly shall invoke its inherent powers to expunge the schedule attached to decree 24 of 1999 often referred to as 1999 Constitution as amended from the decree, which “is now deemed to be an Act of the National Assembly to which the National Assembly have the powers to so do and replace same with a new governance model for Nigeria effective not later than October 1, 2024.
“This amendment is subject to a yes or no vote in a Referendum by the people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” it proposed.
On governance structure under PART III – Stipulations for Federal Administration, the sponsors proposed that: “(1) Nigeria shall be a Federation comprising of Regional Territories and a Federal Capital Territory and shall be a Republic to be known by the name of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“(2) The territorial jurisdiction of Nigeria shall comprise the territory of the Regional members of the Federation and its boundaries shall be as determined by international agreements.
“3.2 Basis of the Federation: “(1) Every Ethnic Nationality and People in Nigeria has an unconditional right to self-determination within here delineated territories.
“(2) The sovereignty, powers and authority to formulate the articles of association towards any reform of the Central Federal Government of Nigeria, at any other time shall lie jointly and severally with all the ethnic nationalities occupying their respective territories.
“(3) Every Ethnic Nationality and People in Nigeria has the right to a full measure of self-government which includes the right to establish institutions of government in the territory that it inhabits and to equitable representation in the Federal and Regional Governments.
“(4) A “Ethnic Nationality or People” for the purpose of this Constitution, is a group of people who have or share a large measure of a common culture or similar customs, mutual intelligibility of language, belief in a common or related identities, a common psychological make-up, and who inhabit.”
