A Professor of Law and constitutional law expert, Ritchard Wokocha, has explained that a House of Assembly does not have the power to “enact a law that is inconsistent or that contends with any section of the Constitution” in Nigeria.
He stated this on Nigeria Info’s Hard Facts, in reaction to the Rivers State House of Assembly amending the Rivers State Local Government Law to extend the tenure of elected local government chairmen and councillors if elections do not hold before the end of their tenures.
Professor Wokocha noted that there is a question of constitutionality with amending the said law, as any law that is at variance with the 1999 Constitution is void.
“According to Section 1 sub-section 3 of the constitution, any such law will be void, of no effect,” he said.
He added that the Rivers State governor could exercise a veto against the amendment of the law for this reason, but the State Assembly could also override it, leading to a second question of the legal status of the lawmakers who recently defected from the PDP to the APC.
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