…insist Nigerian Constitution spells out process of becoming citizens

Legal heavyweights in Nigeria have condemned recent comments by the Governor of Bauchi State, who publicly invited all Fulani people around the world to consider Nigeria their home.

The remarks, which have ignited widespread public discourse, were met with sharp criticism from Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), who called the statement “unguided” and contrary to Nigeria’s immigration laws and constitutional provisions.

Speaking in a strongly worded response, Amobi Nzelu (SAN) questioned the rationale and legality behind the governor’s comments. “I don’t know why a governor should make such a statement.

“There are constitutional and immigration procedures for entering Nigeria and even more stringent ones for naturalisation. It’s not a free-for-all situation,” he said.

Nzelu emphasised that Nigeria, like every sovereign nation, has specific legal processes that guide entry, residency, and citizenship.

“If you want to enter Nigeria, there are immigration requirements you must fulfil. There is nothing in our laws that permit anyone to just walk into the country and declare it their home,” he noted, stressing that bypassing these procedures raises serious national security and sovereignty concerns.

Echoing Nzelu’s sentiments, another legal luminary, Mba Ukweni (SAN), added that such a sweeping invitation to non-citizen Fulani people from across the globe is not only legally flawed but dangerous in its implications.

“To say that Fulani all over the world, who are not Nigerian citizens by birth or naturalisation can simply walk into Nigeria and make it their home is an unguarded and unconstitutional statement

“Our constitution clearly spells out the process of becoming a citizen. You don’t become Nigerian just by ethnic affiliation. They are citizens of other countries, and there are legal processes for joining ours,” Ukweni remarked.

Ukweni warned that promoting such narratives could fuel ethnic tensions and threaten Nigeria’s national cohesion.

“This idea that any ethnic group can override legal norms because they share identity with people in Nigeria is a recipe for lawlessness. Nigeria is not a no-man’s land,” he stressed.