Coalition of Lawyers Urge NASS to Intervene in Benue, Zamfara Assemblies Crisis

A nationwide coalition of legal practitioners under the Save Benue and Zamfara Coalition has called on the National Assembly to assume legislative control over the Benue and Zamfara State Houses of Assembly, citing constitutional breakdown and executive interference.

During a peaceful protest at the National Assembly on Tuesday, the lawyers claimed both state legislatures are unable to perform their constitutional responsibilities due to internal turmoil allegedly fueled by their respective governors.

In Zamfara, they said 10 lawmakers have remained suspended since February 2024 on the orders of Governor Dauda Lawal, following their public outcry over rising insecurity. In Benue, 13 legislators were reportedly suspended for resisting Governor Hyacinth Alia’s directive to suspend the state’s Chief Judge.

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Led by Barrister Sambari Benjamin, the coalition urged federal lawmakers to invoke Section 11(4) of the 1999 Constitution, which empowers the National Assembly to make laws for a state in situations where its House of Assembly can no longer function effectively.

The group warned that failure to act swiftly could trigger a constitutional crisis that may necessitate a state of emergency in both states and possibly destabilize the National Assembly itself.

In a petition addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, the coalition stressed the urgency of the matter. “We write to request the urgent intervention of the Senate, under your able leadership, to forestall the demise of our democracy in instalments,” the petition read.

The lawyers referenced the National Assembly’s recent approval of a state of emergency in Rivers State as precedent, warning that Benue and Zamfara may be next unless decisive constitutional action is taken to restore democratic governance.