Adetokunbo Pearse, a key figure in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has challenged the legitimacy of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution, arguing it was unlawfully imposed by the military.
In an Arise News interview, Pearse stated, “You cannot suspend the 1963 constitution and replace it with the 1999 constitution drafted by Abdulsalami and his team. This is a military constitution.”
He referred to the 1999 Constitution, enacted under General Abdulsalami Abubakar’s regime, as lacking democratic roots, unlike the 1963 Constitution, which established Nigeria as a federal republic.
Pearse’s critique fuels ongoing calls for constitutional reform, with many arguing the current document, created without a constituent assembly or public vote, undermines Nigeria’s democratic framework and deepens political and ethnic tensions.
