North West sets new dates for constitution review hearing

• Senate seeks deeper ties with Morocco

From Adesuwa Tsan, Abuja

The Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin, on Wednesday announced new dates for the North West zonal public hearing on the review of the 1999 Constitution.

This is just as the Senate also moved to deepen economic and legislative ties with Morocco.

Barau, who also chairs the Senate Committee on Constitution Review, disclosed during plenary that the hearing which was postponed due to the death of elder statesman Alhaji Aminu Dantata, will now hold on July 18 and 19, 2025, in Kano.

The public hearings had earlier held simultaneously across five of the six geopolitical zones on July 4 and 5, but the North West session was suspended in honour of Dantata, who passed away in Abu Dhabi on June 28 and was buried in Medina on June 30.

Announcing the new date, Barau urged all senators from the 21 senatorial districts in the North West to ensure robust participation and mobilise their constituents to contribute to the constitutional amendment process.

“All concerned Nigerians in the zone are encouraged to prepare and submit memoranda on specific areas of the Constitution they would like amended,” he said, stressing the importance of public input in reshaping the country’s foundational document.

Meanwhile, Senate President Godswill Akpabio same day received the Moroccan Ambassador to Nigeria, Moha Ouali Tagma, and called for stronger bilateral cooperation between both nations.

Describing Morocco as “a new destination for investment,” Akpabio highlighted the growing economic ties between Nigeria and the North African country, particularly the $1.5 billion investment in the fertilizer industry in Akwa Ibom State.

“This relationship is one that has come to stay,” Akpabio said. “Morocco is becoming a great economic partner to Nigeria, and we are determined to strengthen our collaboration, especially in the oil and gas sector.”

He also confirmed that the long-stalled Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project is back on track, with initial engineering obstacles now resolved.

“The Group CEO of NNPC recently announced that the challenges around crossing the River Niger have been overcome. The project is on course,” he said, expressing optimism that Nigeria’s gas reserves will soon be exported to Morocco and beyond.

The Moroccan ambassador, in response, extended a formal invitation to the Nigerian Parliament to visit Morocco, noting the importance of closer legislative relations between the two African powers.

“We believe this relationship should go beyond governments to include strong parliamentary ties, and we are glad to see that happening,” Ambassador Tagma said.