HOR Proposes Creation Of Three- tier Traditional Institutions

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dr Abbas Tajudeen
says the 10th National Assembly is currently working on proposals to bring about three-tier traditional institutions in Nigeria through the ongoing alteration of the 1999 constitution.

‎Dr Abbas announced this in Abuja during an interactive session with traditional rulers as part of activities for the 2025 Open NASS Week, organised by the leadership of the National Assembly in collaboration with the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC) and other Development Partners.

The Speaker told the traditional rulers, led by the Emir of Zazzau, Ambassador Ahmed Nuhu Bamalli, that the proposed three tiers of traditional institutions would cut across federal, state, and local governments to complement the efforts of the political class.

“Permit me just to give you an insight into what the National Assembly is deliberating on as far as traditional institutions are concerned,” he said.

“The 10th National Assembly is actively entertaining proposals to grant some constitutional recognition to traditional institutions. In so doing, there are proposals to have a three-tier traditional council structure as follows:

‎”We should have a National Council of Traditional Rulers; it will be an apex body to advise the President on issues of national unity, security, and cultural affairs.

“The second tier will be the State Council of Chiefs to be constitutionally recognized by state governments regarding issues of customary laws, peace-building, and development. And then Local Government Traditional Council to formally engage with local governments, especially on security, peace-building, and community development.”

‎Dr Abbas further explained that the proposals were based on the unimplemented Section 8 of the 1989 draft constitution, which provided for a local government traditional council presided over by traditional rulers.

According to him, financial autonomy for traditional institutions is one important issue that has often been ignored.

‎The Speaker, turning to concerns of political victimization and harassment by the political class, particularly during and after elections, said the legislature would strive toward achieving constitutional protection for traditional rulers in order to shield them from being coerced into partisanship by those in elective offices during campaign periods.

‎Ambassador Ahmed Nuhu Bamalli, Emir of Zazzau, said traditional rulers were simply asking for the reinstatement of their previous leadership and administrative roles of peace-building, crime prevention, and culture preservation, among others.

‎”All pre-independence constitutions recognized the role of traditional institutions up to the 1963 Republican Constitution, after which the provisions were removed from subsequent amendments.

‎He noted that since the omission, a lot has gone wrong due to the inability of state agencies to adequately relate to happenings in rural areas without the active involvement of traditional institutions.
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Oduyemi Odumade, Edited By Grace Namiji