The National Assembly has transmitted the 1999 Constitution (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026, to the Houses of Assembly of all 36 states for consideration and approval, moving the ongoing constitutional amendment exercise into its next phase.
The bill was transmitted on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, by the Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamoru Ogunlana, following a directive from the leadership of the federal legislature.
The transmission was carried out in accordance with Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which sets out the procedure for altering the nation's Constitution.
Why the 36 State Assemblies Are Important
Unlike ordinary bills, constitutional alteration bills require approval from both the National Assembly and a required number of state legislatures.
Under Section 9, constitutional alteration proposals require approval by resolutions from at least two-thirds of the 36 State Houses of Assembly, meaning at least 24 state legislatures, before the process can proceed to the next constitutional stage.
The 36 state assemblies will therefore now consider the proposals independently, following their respective legislative procedures.
States Given 30 Days To Respond
The National Assembly has asked the state legislatures to consider the bill and communicate their resolutions within 30 days of receiving the documents.
However, the clerk clarified that the 30-day period is not a constitutional deadline.
According to Ogunlana, the Constitution does not specify a fixed period within which state Houses of Assembly must communicate their decisions on constitutional alteration bills.
The 30-day period is instead an administrative timeframe intended to encourage an orderly and coordinated conclusion of the process.
This means that the state assemblies are expected to work towards the 30-day timeframe, but the Constitution itself does not prescribe that period as a mandatory constitutional deadline.
State Assemblies Retain Their Legislative Independence
The National Assembly also emphasised that the transmission of the bill does not amount to directing the state legislatures on how they should vote or consider the proposals.
The Clerk said the National Assembly recognised the constitutional responsibilities and independence of the 36 State Houses of Assembly.
Each state legislature is expected to subject the bill to its own legislative procedures before communicating its resolution to the National Assembly.
What Happens After The State Assemblies Respond?
Once the resolutions of the state Houses of Assembly are received, the National Assembly will determine the subsequent steps required under the Constitution.
The state-level approval is particularly important because the constitutional amendment process requires the prescribed level of concurrence from the state legislatures.
The National Assembly has said it will continue to follow the constitutional requirements governing the alteration process, including due process and cooperation between the different legislative institutions.
More Than 30 Proposals Under Review
The 10th National Assembly has been considering numerous proposals aimed at altering different provisions of Nigeria's 1999 Constitution.
Premium Times reported that more than 30 proposals are being considered during the current alteration exercise, although the state police proposal was identified as the only amendment proposal that had, at the time of its report, been approved by both chambers of the National Assembly.
The specific proposals contained in the Sixth Alteration Bill will now be subject to consideration by the state legislatures.
Next Stage of the Constitutional Amendment Process
The transmission to the 36 State Houses of Assembly marks an important procedural stage in the ongoing constitutional review.
The state legislatures will now deliberate on the proposals and communicate their respective resolutions to the National Assembly.
The outcome of those deliberations will determine whether the proposals obtain the constitutionally required level of state legislative support for the process to move forward.
For now, the National Assembly says it will await the resolutions of the state assemblies before taking the next steps required under Section 9 of the Constitution.
0 Comments