Abstract
A constitution is autochthonous when it is made by the people, for the people and reflective of the
wishes and aspirations of the people. The legal source of authority of all successive constitutions
in Nigeria from 1914 – 1999, was either the British Parliament or successive military
administrations. The autochthony of a constitution is hinged on it being home grown and home
processed without imperial or external involvement and military intervention. This article
critically assessed the constitution making processes in Nigeria from 1914 to 1999 to ascertain
the imperativeness of making an autochthonous constitution in a pluralistic society like Nigeria.
The study examined the constitution-making processes in Nigeria from 1914 to 1999 to ascertain
whether the objective of giving practical effect to Nigeria’s autochthonous constitution can be
achieved. The methodology adopted in this research was doctrinal by gathering materials from
both primary and secondary sources. The primary sources utilized include the review of the
colonial and post-colonial constitution making processes, Legislative enactment and cases. The
secondary sources consulted include books, journal articles, websites, policy statement,
periodicals (newspapers, magazines) and edited works. The research found that the constitution
making processes from 1914 to 1999 had not produced an autochthonous constitution for Nigeria
and neither have the amendment of the constitution from 1999 to 2023 by the fourth Republic
National Assembly produced autochthonous constitution. Although the 1963 Republican
Constitution was the closest Constitution that reflected the wishes of Nigerians, it however failed
the test of autochthony because it had its origin from the 1960 independence Constitution which
was an enactment of the British Parliament and therefore bereft of autochthonous status. The
research further found that the making of an autochthonous constitution in Nigeria’s plural society
is a realisable scheme as the prospects inherent in the making of the homegrown constitutional
order outweighed the challenges. The research recommended that the authority to make and
adopt a new Constitution for Nigeria should be vested in the people of Nigeria as the repository
of the constituent power and the outcome of such exercise should be subjected to a referendum.