From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas has implored the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) to support proposed legislations seeking to create special legislative seats for women and constitutional role for traditional rules.
Abbas, who made the appeal at a joint session of the National Assembly to mark the 2025 Democracy Day celebration, also sought the support of the governors for 35 percent gender affirmative-action.
The House is championing the creation of special seats for women in the two chambers of the National Assembly and state Assemblies as well as a defined role for traditional rulers in the Constitution.
Abbas, who reiterated the commitment of the House to finalize work on the review of the 1999 Constitution by December 2025, said the 10th House has passed 186 bills since its inception in 2023.
“Since June 2023, under President Tinubu’s stewardship and the 10th National Assembly, we launched an eight‑point Legislative Agenda fully aligned with the Renewed Hope Agenda. Within two years, we have reviewed 2,263 bills. Of these, 65.3 percent have passed Second Reading while 186 have been successfully passed.
“A total of 51 bills have received presidential assent, marking an unprecedented milestone for any president in his first two years.”
He noted that the progress made by the parliament since June 2023 included the allocation of N6.11 trillion of the 2025 budget to the security sector, support for the fuel subsidy removal and unification of foreign exchange as well as increased funding for agriculture among others.
“While we celebrate our successes, we remain acutely aware that it is not yet Uhuru. As we enter the second half of our term, our determination is unequivocal: to expedite and finalise the constitutional amendment process by December 2025.
“Some of our priorities include special reserved seats for women, formal constitutional roles for traditional rulers, and legal backing for a 35 percent affirmative-action gender policy.
“We appeal to the Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum and the Progressive Governors’ Forum to advocate for these essential reforms at the state level.”
While commending President Tinubu for his resolve in ending the fuel subsidy regime and floating the Naira, he charged him to take decisive steps in the power sector.
The speaker, who noted that the country must embrace renewable energy to ensure reliable power supply, also stated that the development of the solid minerals sector is imperative for the country’s economic diversification.
“I would be remiss in my responsibility to you if I concluded my brief remarks without also offering some useful recommendations on the way forward. You have demonstrated remarkable resolve in removing the fuel subsidy and allowing the Naira to float.
“Now, we require an equally decisive intervention in our power
sector. While progress is evident, it is time to ‘wave your magic wand’ once more: to break the cycle of underperformance by shifting from an over-reliance on thermal and hydroelectricity to a diversified energy mix.
“Secondly, developing the solid minerals sector is essential for Nigeria’s economic diversification. While we have some existing geological data, it lacks the precision and quality needed to support large-scale exploration.
“To complement executive actions, the House of Representatives will immediately commence an urgent
review of the 2007 Mining Act to allow sub-national entities to operate within the profitable limits of the law while enhancing oversight and mitigating security risks.”