By Obinna Uballa
Former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), has urged the National Assembly to suspend all ongoing efforts to amend the 1999 Constitution, insisting that what Nigeria needs is not another round of patchwork reforms but a brand new, homegrown constitution that reflects the will and diversity of its people.
Delivering the 13th Convocation Lecture of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti (ABUAD) on Monday, titled “Nigeria Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow: Imperative of a Sober and Definitive Recalibration,” Olanipekun described the 1999 Constitution as a “military albatross” imposed on Nigerians without their consent. He said it had outlived its usefulness and legitimacy.
“The National Assembly should, for the time being, stay action on the ongoing amendment or any further amendment to the 1999 Constitution,” Olanipekun said. “This constitution needs a new rebranding, a complete overhaul, a substitution altogether. It has to be a negotiated document that will pave the way for a new social order.”
He argued that the country’s structural imbalance and socio-political challenges stemmed from the faulty foundation of the 1999 Constitution, which, he said, concentrated power at the centre, weakened the federating units, and perpetuated inequality across the system.
According to him, Nigeria requires a people-driven constitution produced through public participation and a national referendum, a process he described as “a solemn act by which a people collectively speak in unison to decide matters of grave national importance.”
Olanipekun proposed a transitional phase between now and 2031 to review and harmonise previous constitutional efforts, including the reports of various national conferences and restructuring committees, ahead of drafting a new consensual document.
“During the transitional period, elections will still hold, and the winners will serve their terms, but with the understanding that come May 29, 2031, Nigeria will operate under a new constitution, a new structure, and a fresh dawn,” he stated.
He further stressed that sovereignty, as provided in Section 14(2)(a) of the 1999 Constitution, resides in the people — who therefore possess the inalienable right to determine how they wish to be governed.
“The referendum, rather than the National Assembly, will decide whether or not Nigeria needs a National Assembly and, if yes, whether full-time or part-time; their tenure, remuneration, and other parameters. This National Assembly cannot act at that referendum since one cannot be a judge in his own case,” Olanipekun added.
He called for a reconfiguration of Nigeria’s federal structure, noting that the states, rather than the central government, should take charge of the country’s political and constitutional re-engineering.
“The states appear to have lost their grip and gravitas on their constitutional areas of influence. Surprisingly, people are still clamouring for more states, but the more states are created, the more weakened the federating units become, and the more imperious the centre grows,” he observed.
On Nigeria’s political culture, Olanipekun decried the lack of ideology among politicians and the rampant defections from one party to another, warning that the trend could destabilise the democratic system.
“Membership of a political party should not be a tea party or picnic but a serious business. There should be fidelity to policies, ideas, programmes, philosophy, and ideology – that’s what sustains democracies in other parts of the world,” he said.
He commended President Bola Tinubu for remaining loyal to his political ideology and refusing to defect despite being in opposition for several years.
“Even as a sole opposition governor, he challenged and withstood the onslaught of the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party and has since remained within the phylum of what is styled ‘the progressives’ in Nigeria. Several others have done otherwise,” he remarked.
Olanipekun also lauded Tinubu for reintroducing the old national anthem, describing it as a symbolic step toward unity and reflection, but urged the government to take deliberate steps to reconcile Nigeria’s ethnic and regional divides.
Concluding, he said Nigeria must stop “parading people” and instead strive to “produce true citizens” committed to nation-building and shared values.
In his remarks, ABUAD Founder and Chancellor, Aare Afe Babalola (SAN), commended Olanipekun for his “well-researched and courageous” lecture, describing it as consistent with his own long-standing advocacy for a new constitution to reset Nigeria’s governance framework and ensure sustainable national development.
