The Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution is to consider the 31 proposals on state creation during its forthcoming zonal public hearing.
Seven of the proposals are from the North East, six from the North West, five each from the South West, South South, and North Central, as well as three requests from the South East geopolitical zone .
Also to be considered during the zonal public hearing are two bills on security and policing for the establishment of state police and a state security council to coordinate internal security policies at the sub-national level.
The committee, chaired by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin, disclosed that the public hearing would be held in the country’s six geo-political zones to gather Nigerians’ input on the proposed constitutional amendments.
The hearing, scheduled for July 4 and 5, 2025, will be held simultaneously in Lagos (South West), Enugu (South East), Ikot Ekpene (South South), Jos (North Central), Maiduguri (North East), and Kano (North West).
It will examine critical national issues, including local government autonomy, state creation, state police, electoral and judicial reforms, and inclusive governance.
The Special Adviser to the Deputy President of the Senate on Media and Publicity, Ismail Mudashir, said one of the bills proposes the establishment of local government councils as a tier of government to ensure their democratic existence and tenure.
He noted that the move was part of a renewed push to grant full autonomy to the country’s 774 local government councils.
