The Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, has said that the National Assembly will prioritise electoral reforms, constitutional review, and the passage of the 2026 Appropriation Bill as it resumes plenary for the remaining 16 months of the 10th Assembly.
Bamidele disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday to outline the legislative agenda of the Assembly as it enters the final phase of its four-year tenure.
He noted that out of the 48 months constitutionally allotted to the 10th National Assembly, only 16 months remain, stressing the need for swift but well-considered legislative responses to Nigeria’s economic, political, and governance challenges.
According to him, the Assembly has spent the last 32 months pursuing far-reaching reforms aimed at repositioning Nigeria from an extraction-dependent economy to a diversified and globally competitive one.
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“As we resume plenary, we have resolved to consider and conclude legislative initiatives that directly touch our electoral regime and governance structure, while consolidating reforms already initiated to make public governance more efficient and people-centred,” he said.
Bamidele revealed that the Assembly would devote significant attention to the scrutiny and passage of the 2026 Appropriation Bill, valued at ₦58.47 trillion, which President Bola Ahmed Tinubu presented to a joint session of the National Assembly on December 18, 2025.
He said the proposed budget is critical to sustaining macroeconomic stability, deepening global competitiveness, and translating economic growth into job creation, higher incomes, and improved quality of life for Nigerians.
The Senate Leader added that recent fiscal reforms, including the enactment of the 2025 Tax Reform Act, have recalibrated Nigeria’s fiscal space by easing the tax burden on low-income earners while placing greater responsibility on high-income earners, a move he said would help shrink budget deficits over time.
On electoral reforms, Bamidele disclosed that the National Assembly has commenced a clause-by-clause review of the Electoral Act, 2022, through the proposed Electoral Bill, 2025, ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He said the Bill introduces over 20 major reforms, including voting rights for prisoners, mandatory release of election funds to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at least one year before elections, electronically generated voter identification with QR codes, and compulsory electronic transmission of polling unit results.
Other proposed reforms include stricter voter registration requirements, standardisation of delegates for party primaries, increased campaign spending limits, tougher sanctions for electoral offences, and mandatory jail terms for vote buying, result falsification, and obstruction of election officials.
According to him, offenders found guilty of vote buying could face fines of up to ₦5 million, two years’ imprisonment, and a 10-year ban from contesting elections.
Bamidele said the Committees on INEC in both chambers would soon submit their reports for plenary consideration, debate, and voting before transmission to the President for assent.
He also disclosed that the review of the 1999 Constitution has reached an advanced stage, with technical sessions concluded and reports from public hearings submitted.
He said the Deputy President of the Senate and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Constitution Review, Senator Barau Jibrin, is expected to lay the report before the Senate before the end of the first quarter of 2026.
Bamidele noted that the constitution amendment process would require approval by at least two-thirds of the 36 State Houses of Assembly, urging state legislatures to consider the proposals on their merit.
He reaffirmed the National Assembly’s commitment to good governance, improved security, and the welfare of Nigerians, describing public trust as a responsibility the Assembly must never breach.
