The House of Representatives is set to commence the crucial debate on a comprehensive set of constitutional amendment bills today, Thursday, 04 December 2025, following a brief deferral yesterday to ensure all members and committee chairmen were fully prepared for the complex legislative exercise.
The debate marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing effort by the 10th National Assembly to review and update the nation’s 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The deliberation will focus on the report of the Deputy Speaker-led House Committee on Constitution Review, which compiled over 87 proposed amendment bills touching on core structural and governance issues.
Key areas expected to dominate the floor debate today include one of the most contentious and highly anticipated proposals involves granting states the constitutional authority to establish their own decentralized State Police forces to enhance internal security; granting full financial and administrative autonomy to Local Government Councils (LGCs), a reform long sought to decentralize power and improve grassroots governance; proposals aimed at shifting certain items from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent List, allowing states to legislate on areas like mines, minerals, and tourism; bills seeking to increase gender representation through reserved legislative seats for women and ensuring the constitutional protection of persons with disabilities; and amendments to strengthen democratic institutions, including the establishment of an Electoral Offences Commission and measures to fast-track judicial processes.
The debate commencing today is part of an ambitious timeline set by the Constitution Review Committee for the continuation and likely conclusion of the intense debate on the floor of the House.
The House is scheduled to hold the crucial voting on the constitutional alteration bills within the next week (around December 10 and 11, 2025). However, the House has previously set a target of delivering the final constitutional amendments for presidential assent by August 2026, ensuring the process is concluded well before the political activities of the 2027 general elections commence.
The deferral of the debate was likely a strategic move to build necessary consensus among the various geopolitical caucuses. Given that constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority in both the House and the Senate, and subsequent ratification by two-thirds of the State Houses of Assembly, the process is inherently difficult.
The intense debate today will determine which of the contentious items, particularly State Police and LGA Autonomy, have secured the crucial political support needed to clear the first legislative hurdle.
