Constitution Amendment: States Get 30-Day Deadline

The National Assembly has transmitted the 2026 Constitution alteration bill to the Houses of Assembly of the 36 states for consideration and approval, asking them to communicate their resolutions within 30 days.

The transmission, carried out on Wednesday, September 16, by the Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamoru Ogunlana, marks the next stage of the ongoing constitutional amendment process.

Ogunlana said the bill was transmitted pursuant to Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, following a directive from the leadership of the National Assembly.

Under the constitutional procedure, proposed amendments must secure approval from at least two-thirds of the 36 State Houses of Assembly before the process can proceed. This means at least 24 state legislatures must approve the relevant alterations.

However, the National Assembly clarified that the 30-day period given to the state assemblies is not a constitutional deadline.

Ogunlana explained that the Constitution does not prescribe a specific period within which state legislatures must communicate their resolutions on constitutional alteration bills.

He said the 30-day timeframe was established as an administrative measure intended to ensure an orderly, coordinated and timely conclusion of the amendment exercise.

The state assemblies are expected to consider the bill according to their respective legislative procedures before communicating their decisions to the National Assembly.

The Clerk also stressed that the transmission of the bill was not intended to influence or dictate how the state legislatures should vote on the proposed amendments.

According to him, the National Assembly recognises the constitutional responsibilities and independence of the state Houses of Assembly in considering the proposals.

The constitutional amendment exercise covers a range of proposed reforms. Among the proposals that have attracted attention is the establishment of state police, which has already been considered and approved by both chambers of the National Assembly and now requires state-level approval.

Other proposed reforms include measures concerning local government financial autonomy, independent candidacy, electoral reforms, special legislative seats for women and aspects of judicial administration.

The state police proposal would require constitutional alteration because policing is currently primarily under federal control.

The National Assembly said further steps would be taken after receiving the resolutions from the state legislatures.

The transmission therefore places significant responsibility on the 36 State Houses of Assembly, which must now deliberate on the proposed alterations and determine their positions.

While the requested 30-day period is administrative rather than legally binding, the National Assembly expects the state legislatures to complete their consideration within the timeframe to facilitate the next stage of the constitutional amendment process.