The National Assembly has commenced deliberations as regards the constitutional amendments that could see the creation of 55 new states and 278 additional local government areas across the country.

Barau’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ismail Mudashir, disclosed this in a statement issued in Abuja on Friday, October 24, 2025.

Speaking at the opening of a two-day joint retreat of the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on the Review of the 1999 Constitution in Lagos, Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau I. Jibrin, reaffirmed the legislature’s commitment to delivering “people-centred and timely” amendments to the constitution.

Barau, who also chairs the Senate Committee on Constitution Review, urged lawmakers to work towards fulfilling their promise of transmitting the first set of amendments to the state Houses of Assembly before the end of the year.

The process had been on for the past two years, engaging constituents, critical stakeholders, and other institutions accumulating to 69 bills, 55 state creation requests, two boundary adjustments and 278 local government creation requests.

Political observers say that while the current review exercise signals renewed political will, the multiplicity of proposals, particularly on the creation of new states and local governments, could again test the unity of the federation and the ability of lawmakers to balance national aspirations with practical governance realities.