It Is An Aberration For National Assembly To Amend The Constitution — Ozekhome SAN

Chief Mike Ozekhome SAN, a human rights activist, and a
Constitutional Lawyer said it is an aberration for a National
Assembly to amend the constitution.

Chief Ozekhome SAN a key facilitator of the National
Consultative Forum, is of the view that the Constitution gave rise
to the National Assembly.

Speaking on the Morning Show on Arise TV, Chief Ozekhome SAN
said that a dog wags its tale, the tale cannot wag the dog to
support his opinion.

According to him, the National Consultative Forum is out to
impress on the National Assembly to do away with Section 8 and 9 of
the 1999 Constitution in the ongoing Constitution amendment.

He added that the exclusion of Section 8 and 9 of the
constitution will make it possible for Nigerians from all nook and
cranny to discuss a national referendum that can be adopted as a
working document that we can give to ourselves.

He stated that the 1999 Constitution we have now is imposed on
us which is the outcome of decree 24 promulgated by Gen Abdulsalami
Abubakar (Rtd).

“With a 28 member provisional ruling council, including Gen
Abubakar (Rtd) they hurriedly put together a document they called
the 1999 constitution,” he said.

Chief Ozekhome SAN mentioned that the process by which a
constitution comes into being is even more important than the
content inside the constitution otherwise bandits can impose a
document on you and force you to take it.

“A constitution should be homegrown and not like the present
constitution, decree 24, that tells us lies against itself,” he
said.

He cited an example with the preamble of the constitution
stating that, “we the people of Nigeria do hereby give to our self
the following constitution. On the contrary, we never gave the 1999
constitution to ourselves, he said.

Another example he cited was from Section 1 sub-section 3 of the
constitution that says that the constitution is supreme and if any
other law is inconsistent with the provision, that other law is
void to the extent of that inconsistency.

The question he raised is; when did we give ourselves this
constitution?

Chief Ozekhome said that the only constitution we actually had,
went through a popular referendum was the 1963 constitution which
created the Mid-west region from the western region. Thus making
the country a 4 regional Country.

Chief Mike Ozekhome SAN, a human rights activist, and a
Constitutional Lawyer said it is an aberration for a National
Assembly to amend the constitution.

Chief Ozekhome SAN a key facilitator of the National
Consultative Forum, is of the view that the Constitution gave rise
to the National Assembly.

Speaking on the Morning Show on Arise TV, Chief Ozekhome SAN
said that a dog wags its tale, the tale cannot wag the dog to
support his opinion.

According to him, the National Consultative Forum is out to
impress on the National Assembly to do away with Section 8 and 9 of
the 1999 Constitution in the ongoing Constitution amendment.

He added that the exclusion of Section 8 and 9 of the
constitution will make it possible for Nigerians from all nook and
cranny to discuss a national referendum that can be adopted as a
working document that we can give to ourselves.

He stated that the 1999 Constitution we have now is imposed on
us which is the outcome of decree 24 promulgated by Gen Abdulsalami
Abubakar (Rtd).

“With a 28 member provisional ruling council, including Gen
Abubakar (Rtd) they hurriedly put together a document they called
the 1999 constitution,” he said.

Chief Ozekhome SAN mentioned that the process by which a
constitution comes into being is even more important than the
content inside the constitution otherwise bandits can impose a
document on you and force you to take it.

“A constitution should be homegrown and not like the present
constitution, decree 24, that tells us lies against itself,” he
said.

He cited an example with the preamble of the constitution
stating that, “we the people of Nigeria do hereby give to our self
the following constitution. On the contrary, we never gave the 1999
constitution to ourselves, he said.

Another example he cited was from Section 1 sub-section 3 of the
constitution that says that the constitution is supreme and if any
other law is inconsistent with the provision, that other law is
void to the extent of that inconsistency.

The question he raised is; when did we give ourselves this
constitution?

Chief Ozekhome said that the only constitution we actually had,
went through a popular referendum was the 1963 constitution which
created the Mid-west region from the western region. Thus making
the country a 4 regional Country.