Nigerian constitution marginalises women, youth, Niger Delta

Ann-Kio Briggs, an activist and member of The Patriots, has renewed calls for a new Nigerian constitution, describing the 1999 Constitution as fundamentally flawed and imposed on the people by military rulers.

Join the Premium Times WhatsApp Community For Quick Access To News and Happenings Around You.

Open in WhatsApp

Speaking on Sunrise Daily, a Channels Television programme, on Tuesday, the 72-year-old environmentalist said the current constitution marginalises key segments of the population and cannot sustain a just and equitable society.

“The constitution is anti-women, anti-youth, and anti-Niger Delta,” she said. “It was handed down by military rulers, and despite repeated amendments and patches, it remains fundamentally flawed.”

Ms Briggs linked the ongoing political crisis in Rivers State—marked by a rift between suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike—to the structural weaknesses of the constitution.

“The people of Rivers State are bearing the brunt of a former governor who refuses to acknowledge that he is no longer in office,” she said. “He insists on controlling governance in the state because he claims he made the current governor. If that’s the case, then he must also accept that others, like former President Goodluck Jonathan, his wife, and Dr Peter Odili, made him.”

She linked the ongoing political crisis in Rivers State, where a rift between suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) minister has led to tension and governance setbacks, to the weakness of the current constitution.

“The people of Rivers State are at the receiving end of a former governor who refuses to see himself as a former governor, instead insisting on controlling the governance of Rivers State because he claims he made the current governor,” she said. “If that is the case, then he must also accept that others, like former President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, and people like Dr. Peter Odili, made him.”

Stay Ahead with Premium Times

Add as a preferred source on Google

On 18 March, President Bola Tinubu declared an emergency rule in Rivers State, suspending Governor Fubara and other elected officials for six months. The president a retired naval officer to run the state as a sole administrator of the state for the period.

The Senate, which took over the legislative functions of the Rivers State House of Assembly following the emergency declaration, passed the state’s 2025 budget on 25 June.

President Tinubu has hosted several peace meetings with Governor Fubara and Mr Nyesom Wike at the Presidential Villa.

But Ms Briggs, who hails from the state, said President Bola Tinubu’s intervention to reconcile the governor and the FCT minister has not changed anything in the state. “For almost four months now, Rivers people have been unhappy. But we are watching to see how it all plays out by 1 October,” said

She added that “Projects are being imposed on us, many of them frivolous, and there’s no real accounting for our funds.”

Ms Briggs, who said she was a delegate to the 2014 National Conference convened by former President Goodluck Jonathan to address Nigeria’s structural and constitutional challenges, criticised political leaders for shying away from constitutional reforms. She alleged that “Politicians today shy away from this because the current document favours them”

She maintained that the conference offered a unique opportunity to lay the foundation for a people-led constitution that reflected the interests of all Nigerians.

She insisted the constitution must be completely “rewritten”, not merely amended, because Nigeria has never genuinely reached a national consensus on how its diverse groups should live together since independence from British colonial rule.

The human rights activist faulted the view held by former President Olusegun Obasanjo that governance outcomes depend more on who is in office than on the constitution itself, arguing instead that a “flawed legal framework can undermine even well-meaning leadership.”

Constitutional reform not regional agenda

Ms Briggs emphasised that constitutional reform is a national—not a regional—issue.

“This isn’t a Southern agenda; it’s a Nigerian one,” she said, noting that leaders from the North, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Arewa groups, market women, youths, and stakeholders from all six geopolitical zones have, at various times, demanded constitutional review.

She said The Patriots had met with President Tinubu a few months ago and are preparing to submit a more detailed proposal to him for onward transmission to the National Assembly.

“We’re preparing to provide more detailed proposals to him soon so he can present them to the National Assembly,” she said.

She called on the legislature to reflect the will of Nigerians in any constitutional review process.

“The National Assembly is not meant to draft the constitution itself, but it must consider what the people they represent demand,” she said.

Ms Briggs warned that the country risked continued stagnation without structural reform.

“If we’re guided by equity and justice, Nigeria has a chance,” she said. “If not, we will remain stuck—financially indebted and wasting the resources meant to build our nation.”

READ ALSO: EDITORIAL: The impropriety of Rivers State’s ₦24bn Govt. House CCTV

The Patriots

The Patriots is a group of elder statemen, professionals, and civil society leaders advocating for constitutional reform in Nigeria. Chaired by former Commonwealth Secretary-General Emeka Anyaoku, the group has consistently argued that the 1999 Constitution was imposed by the military and does not reflect the will of the Nigerian people.

In August 2024, the group met with President Tinubu at the State House in Abuja to renew their call for a people-driven constitution. While acknowledging their concerns, the president said his administration was prioritising economic stability and assured them that constitutional reform would be addressed in due course.