Nation
Constitution: Ekiti Assembly approves state police, judicial autonomy
Adebayo Obajemu
The Ekiti State House of Assembly has given ratification to the creation of state police and judicial autonomy in the ongoing fifth alteration to the 1999 Constitution.
It also supported the provisions stipulating the procedure for the removal from office of principal officers of the Houses of Assembly.
The amended bills were sent to the Assembly for ratification in March 2022.
In a chat with journalists Tuesday in Ado Ekiti on the position taken by the Assembly, the House’s Leader of Government Business, Gboyega Aribisogan, stated that the lawmakers approved the alteration to the issue of law reform in the country for radical improvement in the qualities of laws that will guide the three arms of government.
“At the plenary today, the Assembly approved four areas being considered for amendment to the 1999 Constitution by the National Assembly,” he said.
“What we did was just a concurrence to the amendments and not further alterations to what had been done by the National Assembly.
“These include the approval for the law mandating the state to have a state police to improve security across the county.
“We also approved a law stating the procedure to be followed for the removal of the principal officers of the Houses of Assembly to ensure stability and improve the quality of governance.
“The Assembly also unanimously approved the alteration to the Constitution allowing State to have a law backing the establishment of State Judicial Council just like the National Judicial Council at the Federal level, so that the judiciary can be autonomous.
“It also approved the amendment to the proper regulation of the law reform to ensure that quality laws are made to guarantee good legislation and robust governance and equality in the system.”
The National Assembly in March this year transmitted 44 passed Constitution alteration bills to the 36 state Houses of Assembly for concurrence.
The Clerk to the National Assembly, Amos Ojo, distributed the copies of the bills to clerks of the state Assemblies at a transmission ceremony in Abuja.
