The Association of Legislative Drafting and Advocacy Practitioners (ALDRAP) is set to file a suit at the Federal High Court, Abuja to challenge the National Anthem Act, 2024, which reverted the anthem to the old one.
Respondents in the summons are President Bola Tinubu, the President of the Senate; Speaker, House of Representatives; Clerk to the National Assembly; National Wages and Salaries Commission; Revenue and Fiscal Allocation Commission and the Accountant-General of the Federation.
According to the group, the enactment of the law violates the provisions of the 1999 constitution. For instance, they stated that no public hearing was held before the said legislation was enacted as required under Section 60 of the 1999 Constitution.
Also, members of the public were not invited to make their contributions, as was done when the other National Anthem was enacted in the year 1978.
“There was no letter of transmission of the said Bill from the President to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.”
“The expenditures associated with the National Anthem Act, 2024 (which was done on May 29, 2024, and on other dates) are not captured in the 2024 Budget Act (as can be attested to by the Accountant-General of the Federation) and therefore the said National Anthem Act, 2024 should be declared illegal.
“Additionally, the said National Anthem Act, 2024 should be declared illegal because it will cause enormous amounts of money and expenses on citizens to comply with this new law (costs of man-hours, changes to official documents and other associated costs of learning the new national anthem is too exorbitant on ordinary citizens without any corresponding increase in their minimum wage,” the group stated.
They insisted that the case of Attorney-General of Bendel State vs. Attorney-General of the Federation (1981) is the major ground for their application, insisting that any law that fails to comply with each stage of the legislative procedures of law-making as prescribed under the 1999 Constitution, would be declared null and void and of no effect.
ALDRAP is an Abuja-based professional Association of lawyers in legislative drafting and advocacy.
