We Must Finalise Electoral Reforms Well Ahead Of 2027 – Speaker Abbas

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, has charged the Green Chamber to finalise electoral reforms good up of the 2027 wide elections.

He said the Electoral Act Amendment Bill seeks not lone to fortify measures against violence, amended entree for persons with disabilities, and found clearer timelines for resolving disputes, but besides to trim the ambiguities that trailed the past elections.

Abbas said lawmakers’ extremity is to marque elections little contentious and litigious, little their outgo done single-day voting, and marque the process of enactment primaries much antiauthoritarian and inclusive.

The talker who stated these successful his code astatine the resumption of plenary aft the House’s yearly recess, said related law changes see provisions for an Electoral Offences Commission, adding that the extremity is to nutrient a caller Electoral Act that stands the trial of time.

He said different large precedence is the Reserved Seats Bill for women, noting that currently, women clasp less than 5% of seats successful the National Assembly, placing Nigeria among the countries with the lowest pistillate parliamentary practice worldwide.

“The measure proposes creating further seats, without reallocating existing ones. These seats volition beryllium contested exclusively by women. They are wholly caller and volition not impact the existent 109 seats successful the Senate oregon the 360 seats successful the House.

“This statement preserves the mandate and aspirations of existing Members portion expanding opportunities for women’s practice and helping Nigeria amended its mediocre planetary standing.

“I impulse Members to enactment this historical step. We are each HeForShe successful advancing sex inclusion, and however we ballot connected this measure volition signifier however past and our daughters retrieve us,” Abbas said.

He besides noted that information reforms stay a apical priority, hence the statement connected multi-level policing indispensable determination from mentation to decisive legislative action.

The talker said creating authorities constabulary done a law amendment remains an enactment and astatine the aforesaid time, the House indispensable fortify assemblage policing by revising the Police Act, 2020.

“While Section 19 establishes Community Policing Committees and Section 33(1) vests recruitment successful the Inspector-General of Police, these provisions centralise excessively overmuch authorization and bounds section responsiveness.

“We should see devolving recruitment, training, and deployment of assemblage constabulary officers to states nether national oversight. This would springiness states a greater relation successful shaping their information architecture portion preserving nationalist standards and coordination,” helium said.

Abbas said economical betterment and occupation instauration indispensable enactment astatine the halfway of the House agenda, adding that tiny and medium-sized enterprises, the backbone of Nigeria’s economy, proceed to look precocious costs, unreliable electricity, and constricted entree to credit.

“We indispensable utilise legislative measures to velocity up the implementation of the Startup Act, vocational grooming hubs, and exertion parks. Equally important is progressive authorities to beforehand renewable energy, heighten grid reliability, and pull backstage concern to stabilise powerfulness proviso and stimulate growth,”he said.

The talker noted that portion advancement had been made, Nigerians inactive acquisition precocious surviving costs, underemployment, and insecurity successful immoderate areas.

He said these challenges contiguous opportunities for lawmakers to instrumentality targeted legislative actions and foster ongoing engagement to make a brighter aboriginal for all.

“In the coming months, our attraction indispensable crook to respective urgent priorities. Chief among them is the law amendment. Eighty-seven proposals concerning devolution of powers, section authorities autonomy, judicial reform, and socio-economic rights await statement and voting.

“The nationalist national proceeding held connected Monday, 22 September 2025, organised by the House Committee connected Constitutional Amendment, was well-attended and highly successful, reflecting wide nationalist involvement and support.

“We indispensable present implicit these votes and transmit the approved amendments to the State Assemblies earlier the extremity of December to alteration aboriginal concurrence up of the predetermination period,” helium added.