They made their views known in separate interviews in Lagos on Sunday.

President Goodluck Jonathan had on Aug. 21, when he received the conference report, said it would be sent to the National Assembly and Council of State for incorporation into the constitution.

Prof. Taiwo Osipitan,a professor of Public Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Lagos, said in a telephone interview that the report should pass through the National Assembly.

“The need for a referendum occurs when a new constitution is to be drafted, however, when the constitution wants to be amended, it should go through the National Assembly.

A former President, Nigeria Bar Association (NBA),Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, also a SAN, corroborated Osipitan’s views.

He said: “If the recommendations of the conference are put to a referendum it can’t form part of the present constitution of the country.

“For it to be a part of the current constitution, it has to go through the route of the National Assembly,’’ he said.

But, Mr Yinka Farounbi, Chairman, NBA Ikeja Branch, disagreed, contending that the report should be subjected to a referendum.
“It will be appropriate if the recommendations of the report be subjected to a referendum by the average Nigerian,’’ Farounbi said.

Also, a former Ikeja branch NBA Chairman, Mr Onyekachi Ubani, aligned himself with Farounbi’s argument, and said that the country needed a new constitution.

“The country needs a new constitution which should be drafted with the input of the people.

“The 1999 Constitution does not have the input of the people, that is why the outcome of the National Conference should be subjected to a referendum,’’ Ubani said.

He alleged that the National Assembly had always derided the Confab, adding that some of the recommendations would be thrown out because they were not favorable to the lawmakers.