The next major phase of Nigeria’s constitutional reform process has begun, with the 36 State Houses of Assemblyreceiving the 2026 Constitution alteration bill for consideration.
The National Assembly transmitted the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026 to the state legislatures on Wednesday, effectively placing the proposed reforms before the lawmakers whose approval is required for the process to move forward.
The transmission was disclosed by the Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamoru Ogunlana, following a directive from the leadership of the National Assembly.
Why the state assemblies matter
The 2026 amendment process is different from the passage of an ordinary bill because the Constitution sets out a special procedure for altering its provisions.
Under Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution, a constitutional alteration cannot be passed by the National Assembly without approval from at least two-thirds of the 36 State Houses of Assembly.
That means at least 24 state assemblies must support the relevant constitutional alteration proposals before the process can cross this stage.
The transmission has therefore shifted a significant part of the constitutional review process from the federal legislature to the states.
The state lawmakers are now expected to examine the bill independently and communicate their resolutions to the National Assembly after completing their deliberations.
States given 30 days — but there is a catch
While the National Assembly expects the state assemblies to respond within 30 days of receiving the bill, Ogunlana made an important clarification.
The 30-day period is not a constitutional deadline.
According to the Clerk, the Constitution does not prescribe a specific period within which state legislatures must communicate their decisions on constitutional alteration bills.
Instead, the 30 days is an administrative timeframe intended to encourage an orderly and timely conclusion of the exercise.
The distinction could become important if any state assembly requires more time to debate the proposals.
National Assembly insists states are independent
Ogunlana also stressed that sending the bill to the state legislatures should not be interpreted as an attempt by the National Assembly to dictate how they should vote.
He said the National Assembly recognised the constitutional responsibility and independence of the state Houses of Assembly in considering the proposed amendments.
The objective, he said, was to facilitate the orderly discharge of their constitutional responsibilities.
The National Assembly further reaffirmed its commitment to due process, institutional cooperation and respect for the legislative responsibilities of the different tiers of government.
What happens after the states respond?
The state assemblies are expected to transmit their individual resolutions to the National Assembly once they conclude their consideration of the bill.
The federal legislature will then determine the next steps based on the responses received from the states.
The constitutional threshold means that support from fewer than 24 state assemblies would not be sufficient to satisfy the two-thirds requirement under Section 9.
The process therefore places the 36 state legislatures at the centre of the next stage of the constitutional review.
Bigger reforms on the table
The wider 2026 constitutional review exercise covers several areas of Nigeria’s governance structure.
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Among the proposals being considered are issues relating to local government autonomy, state police, electoral reforms, devolution of powers, fiscal arrangements, judicial administration, human rights and institutional reforms, alongside proposals concerning traditional institutions and the creation of additional states and local governments.
The breadth of the proposals means the state-level consideration could become another major test of how much consensus exists among Nigeria’s different tiers of government over the future structure of the federation.
For now, however, the immediate task is with the 36 State Houses of Assembly.
They must examine the proposed alterations, debate their implications and communicate their positions to the National Assembly — with the 30-day administrative window now providing the expected timeframe for the next stage.
The constitutional reform process has consequently moved into a phase where what happens in the state capitals could determine how far the National Assembly’s proposals ultimately go.