Nigeria Needs A New Consititution, Not Ammendment – Ozekhome
<p><img width="739" height="415" src="https://www.naijanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Mike-ozekhome.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="Supreme Court Slams N40m Fine Against Mike Ozekhome" decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" srcset="https://www.naijanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Mike-ozekhome.jpg 739w, https://www.naijanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Mike-ozekhome-300x168.jpg 300w, https://www.naijanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Mike-ozekhome-150x84.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 739px) 100vw, 739px" /></p> <h2>A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), <a href="https://www.naijanews.com/2023/02/09/naira-swap-supreme-court-judgement-inconclusive-mike-ozekhome/">Mike Ozekhome</a>, has said the country needs a new constitution rather than an amendment to the 1999 Constitution.</h2> <p>Ozekhome stated that no amount of amendment can cure the flaws in the 1999 constitution following the set-up of Committees to review and amend the country’s law by the National Assembly.</p> <p>He said this on Monday during a National Constitutional dialogue in Lagos in honour of the late Ben Nwabueze, the Pioneer Secretary-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo.</p> <p>The senior lawyer asserted that military leaders handed over the current constitution to Nigerians and that a new constitution should be created through a referendum.</p> <p>Ozkehome added that a new constitution will make provisions for the creation of state police, stating that the argument for abuse of state police is not tenable.</p> <p>He said: “<em>But will their (national assembly) work amount to what we are looking for? Is it just the amendment of the constitution that is our problem? Can you amend a bad document? Can you amend a fundamentally flawed document?.</em></p> <p><em>“My humble answer is that you cannot. One million amendments, multiple by one million amendments of the present fundamentally flawed constitution, cannot cure the original sin.</em></p> <p><em>“What is that original sin? It was imposed on you and me militarily by a military junta led by General Abdulsalami Abubakar and 28 members of the provisional ruling council.</em></p> <p><em>“It was never subjected to the referendum of the people. Guess what? The present constitution was attached as a mere schedule to decree number 24 of 1999.</em></p> <p><em>“So the constitution you are using is a mere schedule attached to a decree. How can you amend it? How do you cleanse it? Nigeria must own their own constitution through a popular referendum of the people.”</em></p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.naijanews.com/2024/03/19/nigeria-needs-a-new-consititution-not-ammendment-ozekhome/">Nigeria Needs A New Consititution, Not Ammendment – Ozekhome</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.naijanews.com">Naija News</a>.</p>
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