House of Reps Sets New Agenda on Constitution Amendment, Electoral Reform

On Tuesday, as lawmakers reassembled from their 2025 annual recess, Speaker of the House of Representatives Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen unveiled a new agenda on constitutional review, electoral reforms, gender equity, and security, outlining a comprehensive legislative roadmap for the remaining 10th National Assembly.

Abbas spoke to members during the first plenary session following the vacation, calling the upcoming legislative phase a “crucial and promising” time for the House.

He asked parliamentarians to step up their efforts to pass laws that have an impact, carry out strict monitoring, and guarantee that their work in parliament results in significant improvements to Nigerians’ lives.

Despite major political and economic obstacles, the speaker reviewed the accomplishments of the 10th House since its June 2023 inauguration and pointed out that the body had made historic strides in institutional changes and lawmaking.

According to him, the House has so far examined 2,263 proposals, passed 237 of them, and obtained the president’s approval for 50 of them. These bills include important topics including cybersecurity, student finance, electric sector reform, taxation, and regional development.

“The 10th House of Representatives is the most productive since 1999, both in terms of legislative output and policy impact, according to our midterm review,” Abbas stated. Through town halls, media briefings, digital platforms, and the House Open Week, we have improved citizen interaction, modernized our regulations, and bolstered internal capacity.

He praised how the legislative and executive branches have a constructive partnership that has allowed for prompt budget passage, policy coherence, and efficient governance without sacrificing the House’s sovereignty.

Abbas stated that finishing the current constitutional amendment process is one of the most pressing legislative priorities.

According to him, there are currently 87 suggestions being considered, including ones on socioeconomic rights, local government autonomy, judicial changes, and the devolution of powers.

He pointed out that a public hearing that was widely attended on September 22 showed that the public was overwhelmingly in favor of constitutional reforms.

The speaker asked lawmakers to expedite discussions, wrap up voting, and send agreed modifications to state assemblies by the end of December in order to give them enough time to agree before the 2027 elections.

Abbas stated that electoral reform is still a crucial subject of attention. He clarified that the proposed revisions to the Election Act are intended to decrease post-election litigation, streamline electoral procedures, improve election security, and increase accessibility for those with disabilities.

By implementing single-day voting and making sure that party primaries are more inclusive and democratic, we hope to reduce the cost and division of elections,” he said. “An Electoral Offenses Commission will also be established by the amendments to improve public trust and accountability.”

Abbas also emphasized the Reserved Seats Bill for Women as a crucial piece of legislation meant to increase the number of women in government. The law aims to create additional seats that can only be contested by women, without changing the present 109 Senate and 360 House seats, since women now hold less than 5% of parliamentary seats.