Agbakoba Urges New Constitution, Fiscal Federalism to Rescue Nigeria’s Economy

 

Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and former Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) president, Dr. Olisa Agbakoba, has called for a comprehensive overhaul of Nigeria’s governance system, advocating a new constitution and genuine fiscal federalism as the only path to sustainable national prosperity.

Agbakoba made the call during a media briefing in Lagos, where he presented his policy paper titled “Devolution is the Solution: Foundational Reform Agenda for Nigeria’s Transformation.”

Describing the 1999 constitution as a “cracked foundation” imposed by the military, Agbakoba said it was incapable of sustaining true federalism or promoting economic growth. He lamented that Nigeria operates a “unitary federation,” with the federal government controlling 97 per cent of national revenue while states and 774 local governments rely almost entirely on federal allocations.

“No amount of economic fine-tuning can succeed in such a centralised system,” he said, noting that President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms, including subsidy removal and exchange rate liberalisation, are technically sound but stifled by political bottlenecks.

Agbakoba argued that repeated constitutional amendments over 25 years have failed to resolve the country’s structural problems. He proposed a new constitution grounded in popular sovereignty, fiscal autonomy, and power devolution. Under his model:

The federal government would manage national issues, including defence, foreign affairs, currency, and immigration.

States would control resources, security, electricity, and education.

Local governments would handle primary education, water, and sanitation.

He stressed that fiscal federalism was key to national balance and economic growth. Agbakoba also recommended prioritising private sector-led development by reducing government involvement in commercial activities, potentially freeing over N10 trillion in trapped capital.

Highlighting sectoral reforms, he said over N25tn–N35tn could be unlocked annually through strategic reforms in maritime, solid minerals, aviation, and land administration. He pointed to the maritime sector alone as costing Nigeria over N11tn yearly, suggesting privatisation and passage of the ports and harbours bill could generate N5tn–N7tn.

He also cited solid minerals such as lithium and rare earths, projecting N45tn annually if states manage resources efficiently. Nigeria’s space industry, he said, could generate $50bn (about N75tn) yearly if fully commercialised. Agbakoba further called for the reform of outdated land laws to release “dead capital” into credit and mortgage markets.

On governance efficiency, he advocated full implementation of the Oronsaye report to merge or scrap redundant agencies and reduce federal ministries from 50 to 18, potentially saving N10tn annually.

Agbakoba stressed that economic growth depends on empowering states and local governments to lead development, warning that “economic reform without political restructuring produces technically correct policies trapped in dysfunctional structures.” He projected that with proper devolution, Nigeria could achieve 10–12 per cent annual GDP growth and a N500 trillion national budget within a decade.

Looking ahead to the 2027 general elections, Agbakoba described it as Nigeria’s last peaceful chance for transformation, urging presidential aspirants to commit to constitutional replacement, state policing, and 50 per cent resource derivation.

He concluded: “History will judge this generation by one test — whether we had the courage to restructure Nigeria when we had the chance. With these reforms, Nigeria can enter a golden age within five years, creating a 100-million-strong middle class and a N500 trillion economy.”