RECOMMENDATIONS: The Committee now recommends as follows:

That the Executive and the National Assembly should cooperate as partners to put in place an enabling law that should lead to a successful and hitch-free National Conference. In that context the Committee recommends that the President should send an Executive Bill for the purpose of the National Conference to the National Assembly, which shall enact it into the enabling law. The Committee is convinced that, on balance of probability, it is safer to have such an enabling law, than to assume it is not needed.

In the alternative to the above, the President may exercise his inherent powers under Section 5 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and convene the Conference.

File: President Goodluck Jonathan flanked by Vice President Namadi Sambo (4th right) and the Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee on the National Conference, Dr. Femi Okurounmu while other committee members watched shortly after the inauguration of the Committee at the State House, Abuja. Photo by Abayomi Adeshida.

ToR6: To advise on Legal Procedures and Options for integrating decisions and outcomes of the national dialogue/conference into the Constitution and Laws of the nation.

Many proposals were canvassed on this matter. One proposal is that, the Conference should draft a ‘New Constitution’ which, shall be subjected to a referendum by the Nigerian people. The result of the referendum shall then be submitted to the National Assembly together with the new Constitution. The National Assembly shall then take all the necessary legislative actions without making any input or amendment to the ‘New Constitution’.

Another proposal was that, the outcomes of the National Conference should be submitted to the National Assembly, which shall consider these, make necessary inputs as the parliament deems appropriate and take appropriate legislative actions accordingly. The Presidency shall, on its part, sift from the outcomes, matters within its jurisdiction and purview to promulgate appropriate policies or decisions to give practical effect to the implementation of the outcomes of the National Conference.

Observations: The Committee observes that the issue of referendum/plebiscite was predominant in the presentations made to it by Nigerians across the country. Members thought that it was an attractive and novel idea. Other presentations suggested that the outcomes of the National Conference should be sent to the National Assembly, for some after the referendum and others without the referendum.

ToR7: To advise Government on any other matter that may be related or incidental to the proposed national dialogue/conference. Having responded to the terms of reference in the preceding chapters and sections of this Report, the Committee believes that there are many issues that relate to the smooth and successful conduct of the National Conference.

Observations: The Committee observes that, there are many other matters that will make for a rewarding National Conference. Some Nigerians have suggested some modalities for decision-making at the Conference, how the Conference itself should be conducted, qualifications for election as Delegates to the Conference as well as the rules of procedure required to guide deliberations at the National Conference.

Recommendations: The   Committee recommends that Government should address the following:

The official name of the Conference should be The National Conference.

The National Conference shall hold at the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The National Conference shall have a Chairperson and a Deputy Chairperson who should be persons of high unimpeachable integrity.

The Executive Secretary of the Conference Management Secretariat shall serve as the Secretary to the National Conference and shall be responsible to the Conference for proper record-keeping and all other administrative matters,

Decision-Making at the National Conference shall be by consensus but where that is not achievable decisions shall be arrived at, by two-thirds majority.

In order to ensure a fully democratic and peoples driven Conference, Government should ensure that, the total number of nominated Delegates does not exceed one-third of the total size of the National Conference.

Rules of Procedure: In order to have a smooth and productive Conference, the Conference Management Secretariat shall develop ‘Rules of Procedure’ for the National Conference guided by the Standing Orders of the Federal House of Representatives.

Election into the National Conference shall be by direct election through universal adult suffrage on non-party basis.

Qualifications of Candidates for Election as Delegates to the National Conference shall be the same as those stipulated for standing election into the House of Representatives except that, candidates for election as Delegates to the National Conference need not be members of any political party.

Discussion on referendum featured prominently during the Retreat held with selected experts and leaders. The experts argued that, the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which is an existing Law, does not make provisions for holding a referendum on matters of amending or making a new Constitution. So, they proffered that, for a referendum to be held, the 1999 Constitution should first be amended. Some other experts, however, argued that, a referendum in the manner proposed, can be held without amending the 1999 Constitution.

Recommendations: The Committee after taking oral and written memoranda where various and numerous options were canvassed, and taking cognizance of the need for strategic caution in advising Government on the handling of the outcomes of the National Conference, now recommends:

That the National Conference itself shall have the responsibility of setting out the said legal procedures and options for integrating its decisions and outcomes of its deliberations into the Constitution and the Laws of the nation.

Concluded