When federal lawmakers return to Abuja on January 27 after the Christmas and New Year recess, the Senate is expected to dive straight into one of the most sensitive and far reaching tasks before the National Assembly the further alteration of the 1999 Constitution. The exercise, which has been months in the making, is set to shape the country’s political structure, security framework and electoral system ahead of future elections.
According to information made available by ranking senators, the constitution review will dominate proceedings as soon as plenary resumes. At the heart of the proposed changes are long standing national debates such as the creation of state police, adjustments to bring the Constitution in line with the Electoral Act 2022, and a controversial proposal to reserve special legislative seats exclusively for women across federal and state assemblies. The leadership of the Senate has signalled that the groundwork for this phase of the amendment process has already been laid. Before lawmakers embarked on their December 2025 break, the joint committee responsible for constitutional alterations had concluded its consultations and compiled reports based on submissions from citizens and interest groups across the country. That report is now before the Senate, awaiting formal consideration.
Speaking on the direction the upper chamber will take when it reconvenes, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Adeyemi Adaramodu from Ekiti South, confirmed that constitutional review and electoral matters will be given priority. He explained that senators are prepared to work through the proposed amendments methodically, following legislative procedure until final decisions are reached.
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According to him, once the Senate begins deliberation, the report will be examined line by line. Each clause will be debated, adopted or rejected, and once that stage is concluded, the National Assembly’s role in shaping the proposals would effectively be complete. The next step would then involve transmitting the approved amendments to state legislatures across the federation for their consideration. The constitution alteration process has been driven by an ad hoc committee jointly set up by both chambers of the National Assembly. The committee is chaired by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin, and includes members from the Senate and the House of Representatives. Over several months, the committee organised public hearings across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, creating platforms for citizens, civil society organisations, professional bodies and traditional institutions to voice their views on how the nation’s supreme law should be improved.
These zonal engagements drew participation from a wide cross section of society, reflecting the growing demand for a constitution that responds more directly to Nigeria’s evolving challenges. Issues raised during the hearings ranged from insecurity and governance to representation and fairness in the political process. The committee’s task was to harmonise these diverse perspectives into concrete proposals that lawmakers could consider.
Among the topics that generated the most interest from stakeholders was the question of state police. With rising insecurity in many parts of the country and persistent calls for decentralised policing, many Nigerians used the public hearings to argue that states should be empowered to establish and control their own police forces alongside federal agencies. Proponents believe this would enhance local security responses and reduce pressure on centrally controlled institutions.
Electoral matters also featured prominently. While the Electoral Act has already undergone reforms, certain provisions require constitutional backing to be fully effective. As a result, lawmakers are seeking to adjust relevant sections of the Constitution to ensure harmony between the supreme law and existing electoral legislation. This alignment is seen as essential for strengthening Nigeria’s democratic process and reducing legal ambiguities during elections. Another major proposal on the table is the Special Seats Bill, which aims to boost women’s participation in legislative governance. The bill seeks to create additional seats in the National Assembly and state houses of assembly that would be contested only by women. Under the proposal, each state and the Federal Capital Territory would gain one extra seat in the Senate and one in the House of Representatives, while state legislatures would receive three additional seats each, one for every senatorial district.
If adopted, the plan would introduce 182 new women only seats nationwide without tampering with existing constituencies. Supporters argue that this approach would help correct long standing gender imbalance in political representation by providing a guaranteed entry point for women into lawmaking bodies. Critics, however, have raised concerns about cost, fairness and whether reserved seats truly address deeper barriers to women’s political participation.
The idea of special legislative seats for women is not new. During a previous attempt to amend the Constitution, a similar proposal failed to secure sufficient support within the National Assembly. Despite renewed advocacy from women’s groups and reform minded legislators, uncertainty remains over whether the bill will gain the required backing this time around. Questions have also been raised about whether there is enough time to complete such a complex amendment process with the 2027 general elections drawing closer. In response to these concerns, Senate leaders have expressed confidence that the timetable remains realistic. They argue that the most intensive stages of consultation have already been completed and that the remaining legislative steps can be concluded swiftly.
Senator Adaramodu noted that the Independent National Electoral Commission is not expected to release the official election timetable until late February, giving lawmakers a window to finalise both the constitutional amendments and any necessary changes to the Electoral Act. He emphasised that once plenary resumes, the Senate intends to move decisively, treating the report clause by clause until a final position is reached. Under Nigeria’s constitutional framework, altering the Constitution is a rigorous process designed to ensure broad consensus. Section 9 subsection 2 of the Constitution requires that any amendment bill must be approved by no less than two thirds of members in both chambers of the National Assembly. In practical terms, this means at least 72 senators and 240 members of the House of Representatives must vote in favour of any proposed change.
Approval at the federal level is only one part of the process. Once the National Assembly passes an amendment bill, it is forwarded to the state houses of assembly. At least two thirds of the 36 states, which translates to 24 states, must endorse the amendments for them to progress further. Only after securing this level of state support can the bill return to the National Assembly for final adoption and onward transmission to the President for assent or rejection. The Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, who also serves as Deputy Chairman of the Constitution Review Committee, has indicated that the overall review exercise is nearing completion. He stated that lawmakers are aiming to conclude the process within the first half of 2026, provided state legislatures cooperate by approving the proposals sent to them.
According to him, the overarching goal of the review is to devolve more practical powers to sub national governments, thereby strengthening federalism and improving governance outcomes. He described the exercise as an opportunity to deliver a constitution that reflects the aspirations of ordinary Nigerians and supports a more responsive and progressive political system. The committee handling the review comprises 45 members and has examined proposals spanning a broad spectrum of national concerns. These include security and policing arrangements, fundamental rights, state creation demands, judicial reforms, power sharing between federal and state authorities, the place of traditional institutions, local government autonomy and electoral integrity.
Each of these areas touches on sensitive aspects of Nigeria’s political and social fabric, which is why the amendment process often attracts intense debate. Supporters see constitutional review as a necessary step in adapting the country’s governance framework to contemporary realities, while sceptics worry about unintended consequences and political self interest.
As senators prepare to return to the chamber, expectations are high that the coming weeks will feature robust debates and critical decisions. Whether on state police, women’s representation or electoral alignment, the outcomes of this process are likely to shape Nigeria’s democratic landscape for years to come. For now, all eyes are on the National Assembly as it resumes deliberations on rewriting key parts of the nation’s rulebook.
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