•Speaker Tajudeen Abbas
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, has warned lawmakers against allowing 2027 election campaigns to distract them from their legislative duties.
He gave the warning yesterday as the House resumed plenary at the National Assembly, Abuja, after its annual recess, urging members to attend plenary and committee sittings regularly, reports The Guardian.
“I call on every Honourable Member to attend plenary and committee sittings faithfully. Legislation and oversight must not be abandoned for the campaign trail,” Abbas said.
He reminded lawmakers that their constituents elected them to serve a full term and deserved their continued commitment to legislative responsibilities.
His warning comes as political activities intensify ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Under the revised timetable of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), campaigns for presidential and National Assembly elections began on August 19, 2026, while campaigns for governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections commenced on September 9.
The House had adjourned on July 23 before postponing its scheduled September 15 resumption to allow rehabilitation work in the legislative chambers.
Lawmakers reconvened on September 29 but sat for only one day before adjourning until yesterday, Tuesday, October 13.
At that sitting, the House extended the implementation period for the capital component of the 2025 Appropriation Act to December 31, 2026.
With the political season gathering momentum, Abbas urged members to prioritise national interest over personal ambitions and party affiliations.
“Whatever our political affiliations or personal ambitions, we remain members of one House. We are bound by one Constitution and one oath. The campaign must never become more important than the country,” he said.
The Speaker said the 10th National Assembly had entered its final phase, making it imperative for lawmakers to complete outstanding legislative assignments and assess their performance.
He disclosed that by mid-June 2026, the House had received 2,747 bills and passed 363. The rate of passage, he added, rose from about seven per cent in the first session to approximately 26 per cent in the third.
However, Abbas cautioned against measuring legislative success solely by the number of bills passed, stressing that laws, motions and investigations must deliver tangible benefits to Nigerians.
“A law must solve a problem. A motion must lead to action. An investigation must protect the public interest. Oversight must improve the management of public resources,” he said.
He said the House’s internal assessment showed that it had completed between 65 and 70 per cent of the principal milestones in its Legislative Agenda.
To accelerate outstanding work, Abbas proposed a focused 100-day legislative programme under which committees would clear pending reports within defined timelines. He also proposed prioritising major bills and urgent national issues on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
He called for improved attendance and announced plans to publish a comprehensive Legislative Scorecard and Legacy Report before the end of the Assembly.
Among the priorities, he said, was concluding the constitutional review process, including work on the State Police Bill, the Reserved Seats for Women Bill and other outstanding constitutional amendment proposals.
Abbas also urged the Executive to submit the Medium Term Expenditure Framework promptly to allow sufficient time for consideration of the 2027 budget.
He said the House would give prompt attention to bills and requests from President Bola Tinubu, including the National Research Development Fund Bill and a request to domesticate the Geneva Conventions and their relevant protocols.
On the 2027 elections, the Speaker called for faithful application of the Electoral Act and urged public institutions to maintain neutrality while providing lawful support to INEC.
He also pledged continued scrutiny of the implementation of the extended 2025 capital budget, warning that the extension must not become an excuse for further delays.
Abbas said the remaining months would test the House’s commitment to public service, particularly as political interests sharpened and attention shifted towards the elections.
“The final phase of an Assembly reveals its character. This is when political interests sharpen and attention begins to shift elsewhere. We must remain focused,” he said.
He urged lawmakers to complete priority legislation, strengthen oversight and serve Nigerians until the final day of their mandate.
