JUST IN: House of Representatives Rejects Bill On Zoning Presidency, Alongside Six Other Constitutional Amendments

JUST IN: House of Representatives Rejects Bill On Zoning Presidency, Alongside Six Other Constitutional Amendments

On Tuesday, the House of Representatives voted against a proposed constitutional amendment that sought to rotate the offices of the President and Vice President among Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones.

In addition to rejecting the rotational presidency bill, the House also declined six other constitutional amendment bills listed on the order paper for consideration.

However, the House resolved to revisit the rejected bills individually on Wednesday, assessing each on its own merit.

During deliberations, the House had initially suspended its rules to allow simultaneous debate on all seven proposed constitutional amendments. Members were allowed to pick any of the bills for discussion.

The majority chose to focus on the contentious bill proposing a zonal rotation of the presidency, a proposal that drew significant opposition.

Deputy Minority Leader, Aliyu Madaki, led the opposition, arguing that the Federal Character Commission already addresses issues of inclusivity and fairness in political appointments.

He insisted that zoning should remain a political party matter, not a constitutional one, emphasizing that political parties already ensure equitable distribution of offices.

Sada Soli (APC, Katsina) described the proposal as creative but questioned whether it might compromise merit and competence.

He cautioned that institutionalizing zonal rotation could deepen ethnic and regional divisions.

Shina Oyedeji (PDP, Oyo) warned that if such a principle were enshrined in the constitution, it could trigger fresh demands from various states and ethnic groups seeking fairness and representation.

He argued that all Nigerians should have equal opportunity to contest for the presidency.

“If zoning favors the South West, for example, which state should it go to—Ogun or Oyo?” he questioned.

Bello Mohammed El-Rufai raised concerns about constitutional implications if a president dies in office, as happened during the tenure of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.

He argued that restricting candidacy by region could violate Nigerians’ rights and foster distrust.

He said, “Whatever you do in Nigeria, there will always be a cry of marginalisation. We should not engage in a dangerous precedent by putting it in the Constitution”.

Olumide Osoba (APC, Ogun) acknowledged the uniqueness of the proposal but contended that political parties should retain the freedom to select candidates without imposed zoning rules.

On the other hand, Minority Whip Ali Isa supported the idea, arguing that the presidency should be rotated across the six zones and extended to state-level governance, promoting inclusivity among senatorial zones.

He argued that, “all geopolitical zones in the country have well qualified persons who can manage the affairs of the country and even the West African subregion, adding that even the Federal Character principle provides that there should be fairness among all states of the country.”

He commended the Deputy Speaker for acknowledging the fact that there is the need to allow fairness, saying “in 2027, we should allow the Presidency go to the North East for the sake of fairness and allow all zones to produce the President”.

The other six rejected bills included:

A bill to transfer the powers of registering and regulating political parties from INEC to the Office of the Registrar General of Political Parties.

A bill similar to the rotational presidency proposal.

A bill to establish and guarantee the independence of State Auditors-General for Local Governments and FCT Area Councils, aiming to boost accountability and good governance at the grassroots level.

A bill seeking to create Ughelli East Local Government Area in Delta State.