Constitution Amendment Waste Of Time, Resources – Okorie

• Chief Chekwas Okorie criticized the ongoing constitution amendment by the National Assembly, deeming it a wasteful exercise
• Okorie proposed an alternative approach, suggesting President Tinubu establish a small committee to review recommendations from the 2014 national conference

Chief Chekwas Okorie, an elder statesman and former presidential candidate, has labelled the National Assembly’s ongoing constitution amendment as a futile exercise that consumes both time and resources.

In a telephone interview with Daily Trust, Okorie highlighted that the same challenges that plagued previous attempts at constitution amendment persist, hindering progress in the current endeavour.

While acknowledging the recent inauguration of the Senate committee tasked with processing constitutional amendment bills, Okorie proposed an alternative approach. He suggested that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu establish a small committee to review the recommendations of the 2014 national conference. The aim would be to extract suitable recommendations and present them to the National Assembly as an executive bill for passage.

Expressing scepticism about the National Assembly’s ability to achieve meaningful amendments, Okorie pointed out the difficulty in garnering the required endorsement from two-thirds of the state assemblies. He cited the issue of local government autonomy as a contentious topic, with governors exerting influence over state assemblies to prevent its implementation.

Okorie criticized the expenditure of public funds on extensive consultations and nationwide tours, which ultimately resulted in obstruction from state assemblies. He advocated for revisiting the recommendations from the 2014 national conference, suggesting that adjustments could be made to align with current dynamics.

In Okorie’s proposed approach, a small committee would refine the recommendations from the 2014 conference and present them as an executive bill from the presidency. This streamlined process, he believes, would bypass the challenges associated with securing state assembly endorsements and facilitate the enactment of constitutional amendments.