Constitution amendment: First draft to be ready in August – Kalu

The deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Okezie Kalu, yesterday hinted that the first draft report of the ongoing review of the 1999 Constitution would be ready in August 2024.

Kalu, who is the chairman of the House Committee on Constitution Review, also said the final clean copy for the presidential assent after the voting on the expected issues of concern by the two chambers of the National Assembly is also expected to be out in August 2025.

He said this at a press conference by the House Committee on Constitution Review on Thursday.

Daily Trust reports that the committee, during its inauguration in Abuja on Monday, gave a 24-month timeline for the conclusion of the exercise.

He said, “Let me mention that our target, the first draft of the constitution, will be out in August 2024.

“The second draft will be out in October 2024. We will commence zonal inputs in October 2024. We will keep collecting input from citizens starting October 14, 2024, as we prepare for the last version or that last draft copy of the constitution.

“We are hoping that there will be a harmonisation of the issues on February 27 and 28, 2025.”

The deputy speaker also called for the submission of memoranda from different interest groups, civil society organisations, labour unions, relevant government institutions, and members of the general public to aid the committee’s work.