By Tony Nnadi
In reaction to an LNC post of April 13, 2018 that described the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria as being “Worse-Than-Apartheid-Constitution”, someone had asked how the votes that will Change that 1999 Constitution will be mustered in Nigeria’s National Assembly, on behalf of the Lower Niger Congress (LNC), I responded to that question as follows:
“Just as the defeat, truncation and ouster of Apartheid Constitution of South Africa was not dependent on the Boers-Dominated Apartheid Parliament in Pretoria, the defeat, truncation and ousting of the Caliphate-Imposed 1999 Constitution of Nigeria is not dependent on the National Assembly or any votes to be cast there.
The Legislative Mandate of the National Assembly is limited to Law-Making and does not include Constitution-Making, as Constitution especially in a Federation, simply means Union Agreement amongst Units that could have been Countries of their own.
Constitution-Making requires Constituent Powers which resides EXCLUSIVELY in the People as an incident of their Sovereignty. The two ways by which that power is exercised is either for the People to Elect a Body of Delegates Mandated and empowered specifically (eg a Constituent Assembly) to go and exercise that power on their behalf for the purpose of Making a Constitution OR the People Vote Directly at a Referendum to express their Will.
When the Constitution states in it’s Preamble that “WE THE PEOPLE, HAVING FIRMLY AND SOLEMN RESOLVED TO LIVE IN UNITY AS ONE INDIVISIBLE AND INDIVISIBLE NATION …….DO HEREBY MAKE AND GIVE TO OURSELVES THE FOLLOWING CONSTITUTION” it simply means that the Constituents, after due consultations in exercise of their Sovereignty, AGREE to commit themselves and their Lands into a Political Union AS DEFINED BY THE DOCUMENT they themselves now describe as “THE FOLLOWING CONSTITUTION”.
In the case of the 1999 Constitution as clearly shown in Decree No.24 of 1999, we the Peoples of Nigeria neither AGREED to live together as one Indivisible Country nor did we MAKE AND GIVE TO OURSELVES THE 1999 CONSTITUTION. That is the lie and the false foundation upon which we are currently building the rickety Union of Death, Attrition and Backwardness, obdurately.
To get a further insight into why the National Assembly has no business whatsoever with the making of Constitution, read Section 14(2)(a) of the so-called 1999 Constitution which expressly admits that : “Sovereignty belongs to the People, from whom Government, through this Constitution, derives all its Powers and Authority”.
Globally, limited power to Amend the Constitution is only delegated to the Legislature when the People have made their Constitution and even at that, those Amendments are always subjected to Referendums or Plebiscites for Approval or Ratification.
The case of Nigeria right now is that WE HAVE NOT MADE ANY CONSTITUTION and so the choking constituents are taking steps to throw off the Caliphate-Imposed 1999 Fraud which render them slaves in their Homelands.
Those sitting in Abuja who swear to preserve, defend and uphold the so-called “1999 Constitution” and who, clinging tenaciously to the Rogue 1999 Constitution as the Basis of the Federation of Nigeria, declare to the rest of us that that Fraudulent Constitution is now non-negotiable, are committing Treason against the rest of us. Those operating political parties and seeking power and other benefits under the Rogue 1999 Constitution are aiding and abetting this Treason.
Those who refuse to understand these grave disputes are likely to become casualties of the cross-fires already raging in that dispute.
Ignorance around this matter is a very dangerous gamble, especially where the LNC and it’s MNN Alliance Partners have made knowledge abundantly available to all”.
Tony Nnadi is an Attorney, Lower Niger Congress (LNC) Secretary General and Nigerian Indigenous Nationalities Alliance for Self-determination (NINAS) Coordinating Secretary.
