The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) led by its Chairman and Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has expressed its support for the ongoing amendments to the 1999 Constitution.
The governors hosted the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, alongside key officials driving the constitutional review, during a meeting on Wednesday night.
In the meeting, Deputy Speaker Kalu briefed the thirty-six state governors on the progress of the constitutional review process and solicited their collaboration to ensure its smooth implementation.
Following the meeting, Mr Kalu described the governors as indispensable stakeholders in the process, emphasizing that the success of the review hinges on their active participation.
“The governors are major stakeholders, and without the federating units, there is no Nigeria. If you ignore them, the wheel of progress towards realizing our objectives with regards to this constitutional review will be slowed down.”
Mr Kalu further revealed that the review committee has identified 161 areas for potential amendments in the constitution.
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He highlighted plans to engage the governors extensively, including state and geopolitical zone visits, to gather public input on key thematic areas.
“We have had a robust discussion, and I must say the governors made excellent contributions. They are in support of the constitution review,” he added.
Mr Kalu also noted a strategic shift in the engagement process, saying each governor will appoint a liaison to facilitate communication between the NGF and the review committee, ensuring swift input and feedback.
This collaborative approach, he said, aims to ease the legislative process when the amendments reach state Houses of Assembly for ratification.
In their response, the governors pledged to work closely with the legislative arm to advance the review process.
They expressed openness to the proposed changes and a commitment to fostering national progress through the amendments.
