Why Constitutional Amendment Won’t Work — Hamza Al Mustapha

Maj. Hamza Al Mustapha, Chief Security Officer (CSO) to the late
military head of state, Gen. Sani Abacha, says the current effort
to amend the 1999 Constitution might not work, as it is being done
in a rush.

Al Mustapha said this when he spoke with the News Agency of
Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday.

“Constitutional amendments are done to carry everybody along,
but I can see a Constitutional amendment carrying a few elites in a
hurry.

“Constitutional amendments should be given time and should not
be seen carrying the opinions of a few elites abandoning the
majority.

“Most Nigerians especially the downtrodden in rural communities
are not even aware of what is going on, they don’t even have the
money to travel to the urban centres for public hearing.

“At the end of the day, you end up listening to the views of a
few elites in trying to amend the constitution,” he said.
Al Mustapha said the elites were the problem of the country.

“The elites are the problem of Nigeria, institutions are killed
by the elites, they determine government direction, they are
government contractors and top civil servants in the country are
also part of the elites.

“So the problem of Nigeria revolves around the elites.

“The whole thing has nothing to do with the poor masses, even
the issue of mutual suspicious among ethnic groups is being
championed by the elites,” he said.

Al Mustapha said that the same elites who claimed that the 1999
Constitution was done in a rush were trying to amend the
constitution in a rush.

“You say that the 1999 constitution was rejected because it was
done in a rush and here you are doing amendment haphazardly.

“At the end of the day, you will still call for another
Constitutional review because anything that is done outside
reality, so long as it has to do with rights of man in governance
is fake arrangement,” he said.

Al Mustapha said the best way to ensure a successful
constitution amendment was to anchor the process around the
Nigerian masses and not the elites.

” If you want to have an acceptable constitution for everybody
in the country, then you require a detailed plan of action that
will carry everybody along across the country.

“You don’t rush Constitutional amendment, you have to anchor
everything around the masses and not the elites.

“Constitutional amendments also need time to be successful,” he
said. (NAN)

Maj. Hamza Al Mustapha, Chief Security Officer (CSO) to the late
military head of state, Gen. Sani Abacha, says the current effort
to amend the 1999 Constitution might not work, as it is being done
in a rush.

Al Mustapha said this when he spoke with the News Agency of
Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday.

“Constitutional amendments are done to carry everybody along,
but I can see a Constitutional amendment carrying a few elites in a
hurry.

“Constitutional amendments should be given time and should not
be seen carrying the opinions of a few elites abandoning the
majority.

“Most Nigerians especially the downtrodden in rural communities
are not even aware of what is going on, they don’t even have the
money to travel to the urban centres for public hearing.

“At the end of the day, you end up listening to the views of a
few elites in trying to amend the constitution,” he said.
Al Mustapha said the elites were the problem of the country.

“The elites are the problem of Nigeria, institutions are killed
by the elites, they determine government direction, they are
government contractors and top civil servants in the country are
also part of the elites.

“So the problem of Nigeria revolves around the elites.

“The whole thing has nothing to do with the poor masses, even
the issue of mutual suspicious among ethnic groups is being
championed by the elites,” he said.

Al Mustapha said that the same elites who claimed that the 1999
Constitution was done in a rush were trying to amend the
constitution in a rush.

“You say that the 1999 constitution was rejected because it was
done in a rush and here you are doing amendment haphazardly.

“At the end of the day, you will still call for another
Constitutional review because anything that is done outside
reality, so long as it has to do with rights of man in governance
is fake arrangement,” he said.

Al Mustapha said the best way to ensure a successful
constitution amendment was to anchor the process around the
Nigerian masses and not the elites.

” If you want to have an acceptable constitution for everybody
in the country, then you require a detailed plan of action that
will carry everybody along across the country.

“You don’t rush Constitutional amendment, you have to anchor
everything around the masses and not the elites.

“Constitutional amendments also need time to be successful,” he
said. (NAN)