Legislature
Senate alters plenary time, indicts self over disregard for its standing rule
***As Lawan disagrees with Akpabio over alignment with Reps
The 10th Senate on Thursday acknowledged its greatest shortcoming of Commencing plenary behind schedule thereby trampling on its standing rule that stipulated 10am as the time for commencement of sitting.
The Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele had raised two motions at the commencement of plenary, on one hand he proposed amendments to the standing rules in respect to amendment of order 8(2) which has to do with sitting of the Senate as it is proposed on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays for the Senate to shift it from 10am to 11am
The leader also moved his second motion on Standing Committees
Amendment of order 96 inclusion of 58 which is to create the Senate Committee on Reparation and repatriation.
However, the second motion was stepped down as senators opted to debate on the issue of sitting time.
While lending his voice to the issue Senator Akpabio had indicated that the most urgent motion is to align the time of resumption with what obtains in the House of Represntatives.
He suggested that the motion should be separated and that the first one to be taken should be the time of sitting.
Immediate past President of the Senate, Ahmed Lawan while making his contribution disagreed with Akpabio saying, “I don’t know the basis at the moment for which we want to shift our sitting from 10 to 11 and end at 3pm, for me, we have more energy, our eyes are clearer in the morning and one hour into the day, probably we would have lost some energy.
“If we work between 10am and 2pm, if we seat in the plenary between 10am and 2pm, our committees would do better. If we don’t have any reason except we have to synchronize with the house, I think we need to look at it again. But if we have other reasons that we must change that is fine. If it is just to synchronize the House may have their reasons for sitting at 11 and close by 3 but here I don’t see the reasons.
Responding Akpabio threw it back at Lawan that the idea of the Senate sitting by 11am started during his time as the Presidwnt of the 9th Senate especially during the period of the covid.
Explaining further, Lawan said it was as a result of the dreadful COVID-19 the time was tinkered with from 10am to 11am adding that they had to cut down on the number of days for plenary.
Akpabio retorted saying, “Our rules said 10am but we came to meet the tradition of 11am, the only thing that we changed was to add additional day because during that COVID-19 period we were sitting twice a week.
“I said no, since there is no more COVID we should sit three times in a week and we maintained what we saw, 11am but now we are.saying that we have not been able to justify the 11am sitting unless it reflects same on our rules.
“The Idea of 3pm in my view is not correct because it does not mean you must sit till 3pm. It simply means if we don’t have musc to do we can Close at 1pm or 2pm to enable our colleagues to go for committee sittings and other matters related to the proceedings of the Senate such as clearances and all that.
“The only aspect of it is to legalise it so that people dint have the impression that you are sitting at 11am while the rule says 10am.
The Senate Leader again said,
“I want to make a very passionate appeal to our colleagues, for me I believe the issue should go beyond trying to reconcile with the house of representatives, the logic is that a lot of times, distinguished senators have reasons to go to bed late and there is no point having in our rule book that our sitting time is 10 am, and everyday we sit at 11’o clock.
“Of course there are some distinguished senators who would be here 10 for 10 but there have been a lot of time where even you Mr. President at 11or 10:30 and we have to wait for some of our collegaues to come so that we could form a qorum , it is important that we work our talk.
“If our rule had said 10 am and we have not been able to seat 10am for 10am, I think what is most important is that if we say 11am, it should be 11’oclock.
“I think it makes sense that we amend our rules to read 11’o clock rather our rule book saying 10 am and we don’t seat until 11, for me this is the basic justification.
After going into into close session at the instance of Akpabio so that members of the public will not misunderstand them they return to support the motion which stipulates that plenary session will now commence at 11am.
Before now, according to the Senate Standing Rule, plenary starts at 10 a.m. on every legislative day.
Rule 8 (2) of the Senate Standing Rule (as amended) states: “On Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, the Senate shall meet at 10:00 a.m. and unless previously adjourned shall sit until 2:00 p.m., unless before a substantive motion had been moved by the Leader of the Senate or a Senator acting in that capacity “that this Senate do now adjourn” and if such a motion be moved and if the question thereon has not previously been determined, at 2:00 p.m. the President of the Senate shall adjourn the Senate without question being put.”
However, because the senate president who presides over the sitting was in the habit of arriving late, the plenary had always begun much later. As a result of the tardiness, many Senate committees have had to postpone important meetings because the Senate plenary ended late in the evening.
***Allocates N23.96 Trillion for Capital Projects, N14.31 Trillion for Debt Servicing
The Nigerian Senate along with the House of Represebtatives have passed the 2025 Appropriation Bill, approving a record-breaking budget of N54,990,165,355,396 to finance government activities in the coming fiscal year.
The budget, titled A Bill for an Act to Authorise the Issue from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation, was approved after deliberations on its allocations and implications for economic growth, debt management, and infrastructure development.
The chairman of the National Assemble Godswill Akpabio who is also the President of the Senate gave the beakdown of the 2025 Budget to show that Statutory Transfers: ₦3.65 trillion, debt Servicing: ₦14.32 trillion, Recurrent (Non-Debt) Expenditure: ₦13.06 trillion and
Capital Expenditure: ₦23.96 trillion
The largest chunk of the budget, ₦23.96 trillion, was allocated for capital expenditure, aimed at infrastructure development, healthcare, education, and security.
This signals the government’s commitment to addressing Nigeria’s infrastructural deficit.
However, the ₦14.32 trillion earmarked for debt servicing highlights the country’s rising debt burden, sparking concerns over long-term financial sustainability.
With the National Assembly approval, the budget now awaits President Bola Tinubu’s assent, after which implementation will begin. Analysts predict a challenging fiscal year, balancing economic growth with prudent spending and debt repayment.
However, time will tell whether the historic budget will deliver on its promises, or economic realities force adjustments down the line?
***Says addittional fund is to Prioritize Infrastructure, Health, Economic Growth
The chairman of the senate committee on Appropriation Senator Adeola Solomon Olamilekan has explained the approval of the 2025 Appropriation Bill by the national Assembly which it increased from N49.7 trillion to N54.99 trillion—the highest in the nation’s history.
The adjustment followed legislative reviews that uncovered additional revenues from key government agencies.
While explaining the Budget Expansion and Revenue Sources Olamilekan indicated that the additional N4.99 trillion was sourced from Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and Government-Owned Enterprises (GOEs)
These he said led to an increase in funding for critical sectors, including N1.5 trillion for Bank of Agriculture, N500 billion for Bank of Industry, 1 trillion for Ministry of Solid Minerals, N1.5 trillion for Renewable Infrastructure Fund, N300 billion – Road construction and N400 billion for Rail transport.
Others are N380 billion of Water resources, irrigation, and dam projects, N250 billion for Military barracks renovation N120 billion for New military aviation projects, N50 billion for Border security agencies
Following the suspension of U.S. health aid, which previously provided funding for HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, and polio treatments, President Tinubu approved $200 million (N300 billion) to ensure continued medical supplies and healthcare support for affected patients.
On the major Boost for Infrastructure Development he said a record N23.7 trillion has been allocated for capital projects, marking a significant leap in infrastructure investment.
He listed the areas the funds will focus on to include Roads and railways,nEducation and healthcare improvements and Other critical public infrastructure
To prevent delays in budget implementation, the 2026 budget process will begin in July 2025, with the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) submitted early and the Appropriation Bill expected by October 2025.
Concerns over inadequate rail infrastructure funding in the South East were raised, but legislative leaders clarified that rail projects are primarily funded through public-private partnerships (PPPs).
According to him, the 2025 budget focuses on light rail development in Lagos, Ogun, Kaduna, and Kano, while further discussions on South East projects are ongoing.
He explained that to maintain Economic Stability the budget parameters remain unchanged, with key revenue sources including FIRS increasing its revenue target to N25.1 trillion, Nigeria Customs Service boosting revenue collection through stricter enforcement and Independent revenue agencies contributing 100% of their generated funds to the federal government
The House of Representatives has directed its Joint Committee on Communications and Interior to investigate reports of unauthorized National Identification Number (NIN) linkages by telecom service providers across Nigeria.
The decision followed the unanimous adoption of a motion jointly sponsored by Hon. Patrick Umoh (APC, Akwa Ibom) and Hon. Julius Ihonvbere (APC, Edo). The House also instructed the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to probe the allegations and sanction any telecom operator found guilty of violating privacy laws.
Additionally, the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has been asked to clarify whether telecom providers were authorized to link NINs to subscriber lines and if such actions comply with existing regulations.
Hon. Umoh raised concerns about recent reports indicating that telecom companies have linked NINs to subscribers’ SIM cards without their consent. He warned that this unauthorized linkage exposes Nigerians to criminal activities, such as identity theft, financial fraud, and other cybercrimes.
“This action is a clear violation of the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 and the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) 2019, which guarantee the right to privacy and the protection of personal data,” Umoh stated.
He further emphasized that while the NIN system was introduced to enhance national security and streamline identification processes, unauthorized linkages undermine public trust and jeopardize citizens’ safety.
“Aware that innocent citizens have been wrongly implicated in crimes, suffered reputational damage, harassment, and legal challenges for offenses they know nothing about, it is imperative that we address this issue immediately,” Umoh added.
The House has mandated the probe committee to submit its findings within four weeks, as lawmakers seek to protect Nigerians from potential data breaches and uphold the integrity of national security protocols.
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