Members of the House of Representatives on Wednesday endorsed new amendments to the 1999 Constitution.
A total of 252 lawmakers voted in Abuja to adopt 70 new clauses added to the constitution.

The clauses were compressed into a constitution amendment bill already harmonised by a conference committee of the Senate and the House.
The motion for the adoption of the conference report was moved by the Deputy Speaker of the House, Mr. Emeka Ihedioha. Ihedioha doubles as the Chairman, House Committee on Constitution Review.
Speaker of the House, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal, presided over Wednesday’s session.

A total of 261 members were present in the chambers when voting started.
Out of the number, 252 voted to adopt the conference report, eight voted against, while one member abstained.
As the voting closed and the results declared, Tambuwal observed that the House had met the constitutional requirement of two-thirds majority of members to amend the constitution.
Under Section 9 of the constitution, a constitution amendment bill succeeds after it receives the support of 240 (two-thirds) members out of the total of 360.
The bill will also receive the same support in the Senate, where there are 109 members.
By implication, 73 senators will vote to adopt the report for the amendment to pass.

The House did its own voting on Wednesday, awaiting the Senate’s.
Following the Senate’s voting, ‎the document is forwarded to the 36 state Houses of Assembly for “approval” by two-thirds (24) of them and returned to the National Assembly again for the final approval.
“We have met the constitutional requirement of two-thirds for the adoption and passage of this important bill.
“Let us talk to our colleagues at the state assemblies for the adoption of this report”, Tambuwal told members.
Among the clauses adopted on Wednesday was the removal of immunity against criminal prosecution for the President and state Governors.
Members also endorsed to grant financial autonomy to local government councils in the country.
Under the new provision on autonomy, the President and Governors can be prosecuted for criminal offences while still in office and stand removed from office once found guilty.

Local government councils now have full autonomy and are no longer appendages of state governments.
Section 7(1)(c) of the new provision states, “The House of Assembly of every state, shall, subject to Section 8 of this constitution, ensure that existence of democratically elected local government councils under a law,which provides for their funding from the public revenue of the state and the autonomy of the local government councils.”
The new provisions have also created separate offices for the Minister of Justice and the Attorney-General of the Federation, with each office having clearly-defined roles.
Similarly, the Office of the Auditor-General of the ‎Federation has been placed on the First Line of the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation.

The provision for state creation has been altered to accommodate a referendum to be conducted in all local governments comprising a state to decide whether a new state should be carved out of the existing state.
On citizenship, the new provision tries to resolve the controversy over state of origin by defining a citizen as “a citizen of Nigeria is an indigene of a particular community of a state in Nigeria if he was born in that state”, among others.

Source: http://www.punchng.com/news/reps-back-removal-of-immunity-for-president-govs/

I see a drama gradually unfolding

Members of the House of Representatives on Wednesday endorsed new amendments to the 1999 Constitution.
A total of 252 lawmakers voted in Abuja to adopt 70 new clauses added to the constitution.

The clauses were compressed into a constitution amendment bill already harmonised by a conference committee of the Senate and the House.
The motion for the adoption of the conference report was moved by the Deputy Speaker of the House, Mr. Emeka Ihedioha. Ihedioha doubles as the Chairman, House Committee on Constitution Review.
Speaker of the House, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal, presided over Wednesday’s session.

A total of 261 members were present in the chambers when voting started.
Out of the number, 252 voted to adopt the conference report, eight voted against, while one member abstained.
As the voting closed and the results declared, Tambuwal observed that the House had met the constitutional requirement of two-thirds majority of members to amend the constitution.
Under Section 9 of the constitution, a constitution amendment bill succeeds after it receives the support of 240 (two-thirds) members out of the total of 360.
The bill will also receive the same support in the Senate, where there are 109 members.
By implication, 73 senators will vote to adopt the report for the amendment to pass.

The House did its own voting on Wednesday, awaiting the Senate’s.
Following the Senate’s voting, ‎the document is forwarded to the 36 state Houses of Assembly for “approval” by two-thirds (24) of them and returned to the National Assembly again for the final approval.
“We have met the constitutional requirement of two-thirds for the adoption and passage of this important bill.
“Let us talk to our colleagues at the state assemblies for the adoption of this report”, Tambuwal told members.
Among the clauses adopted on Wednesday was the removal of immunity against criminal prosecution for the President and state Governors.
Members also endorsed to grant financial autonomy to local government councils in the country.
Under the new provision on autonomy, the President and Governors can be prosecuted for criminal offences while still in office and stand removed from office once found guilty.

Local government councils now have full autonomy and are no longer appendages of state governments.
Section 7(1)(c) of the new provision states, “The House of Assembly of every state, shall, subject to Section 8 of this constitution, ensure that existence of democratically elected local government councils under a law,which provides for their funding from the public revenue of the state and the autonomy of the local government councils.”
The new provisions have also created separate offices for the Minister of Justice and the Attorney-General of the Federation, with each office having clearly-defined roles.
Similarly, the Office of the Auditor-General of the ‎Federation has been placed on the First Line of the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation.

The provision for state creation has been altered to accommodate a referendum to be conducted in all local governments comprising a state to decide whether a new state should be carved out of the existing state.
On citizenship, the new provision tries to resolve the controversy over state of origin by defining a citizen as “a citizen of Nigeria.

I like this...

Excellent

Starting what they cannot finish.

I have never trusted the leadership of that house for once since they stole the position carved out for yoruba as speaker.
More like house of hausafulani voice to the nation.
On citizenship bla bla people all over the nation shoul be wary cos it a plot by these fulanis to keep bringing their brothers in senegal gambia mali guinea sudan chad niger mauritania etc to occupy south and middle belt area and declare the citizens as it currently happening in my village. Shine ya eyes people.
Why now?? If as a southern kid u grow up in the hausafulani dominated areas of North u wldhave experience the level of discrimination on religoin and ethnic sentiment which they don't get down south here!!

They have not found it worthy to pass the PIB bill, a bill that will generta more jobs, liberate us from long running economic slavery, now this. If they wont pass the law to hand polithiefcians by their balls for stealing with impunity, then the immunity law is gabbage.