General
Lawmakers Must Not Spend N110bn on Cars, Palliatives—SERAP
By Adedapo Adesanya
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has advised the Senate President, Mr Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Tajudeen Abbas, to halt plans to spend N40 billion on 465 exotic and bulletproof cars for members and principal officials and N70 billion as palliatives for new members.
In the letter dated July 15, 2023, signed by SERAP deputy director, Mr Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said, “This travesty and apparent conflicts of interest and self-dealing by members of the National Assembly must stop.”
SERAP also urged them to “repeal the 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Act to reduce the budget for the National Assembly by N110 billion, reflect the current economic realities in the country and address the impact of the removal of fuel subsidy on the over 137 million poor Nigerians.”
It asked the parliament to “request President Bola Tinubu to present a fresh supplementary appropriation bill, to redirect the N110 billion to address the situation of the over 20 million out-of-school children in Nigeria, for the approval of the National Assembly.”
“While N70 billion ‘support allowance’ is budgeted for 306 new lawmakers, only N500 billion worth of palliatives is budgeted for 12 million poor Nigerians. N40 billion is also allocated to buy 465 Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs) and bulletproof cars for members and principal officials,” the group stated.
SERAP said, “It is a fundamental breach of their fiduciary duties for members of the National Assembly to arbitrarily increase their own budget and to use the budget as a tool to satisfy the lifestyle of lawmakers.”
“It is a grave violation of the public trust and constitutional oath of office for members of the National Assembly to unjustifiably increase their own budget at a time when over 137 million poor Nigerians are living in extreme poverty exacerbated by the removal of fuel subsidy.
“We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within seven days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel you and the National Assembly to comply with our request in the public interest.
“Rather than exercising their constitutional and oversight functions to pursue the public interest by considering bills to improve the conditions of the over 137 million poor Nigerians who are facing the impact of the removal of fuel subsidy, the lawmakers seem to be looking after themselves.
“According to reports, no fewer than 107 units of the 2023 model of the Toyota Landcruiser and 358 units of the 2023 model of Toyota Prado would be bought for the use of members of the Senate and the House of Representatives, respectively.
“The planned purchase is different from the official bulletproof vehicles expected to be purchased for the four presiding officers of the National Assembly.
“The proposed spending of N110 billion by members of the National Assembly is apparently on top of the N281 billion already provided for the lawmakers in the 2023 National Assembly budget. The proposed spending is also different from the N30.17 billion budgeted for the ‘inauguration expenses’ for new members.
“SERAP is concerned that the budget for the National Assembly may further be increased as members are reportedly demanding an upward review of their salaries and allowances purportedly to offset the impact of the removal of fuel subsidy.
“Section 14(2)(b) of the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 [as amended] provides that, ‘the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.
“Under Section 16(1)(a)(b), the National Assembly has the obligations to ‘harness the resources of the nation and promote national prosperity and an efficient, a dynamic and self-reliant economy’, and to ‘secure the maximum welfare, freedom and happiness of every citizen.’
“Section 18 of the Constitution of Nigeria provides, among others, that: ‘Government shall direct its policy towards ensuring that there are equal and adequate educational opportunities at all levels. Government shall strive to eradicate illiteracy, and to this end, Government shall provide (a) free, compulsory, and universal primary education.
“The Compulsory, Free Universal Basic Education Act also provides in Section 2(1) that, ‘Every Government in Nigeria shall provide free, compulsory and Universal basic education for every child of primary and junior secondary, school-age,” it said.
It warned that “The proposed spending of N110 billion by members of the National Assembly is a fundamental breach of the Nigerian Constitution and the country’s international human rights obligations.
“Nigerians have a right to honest and faithful performance by their public officials, including lawmakers, as public officials owe a fiduciary duty to the general citizenry.
“Cutting the N110 billion from the budget of the National Assembly would be entirely consistent with your constitutional oath of office, and the letter and spirit of the Nigerian Constitution, as it would promote efficient, honest, and legal spending of public money.
“The problem of out-of-school children has continued to have catastrophic effects on the lives of millions of children, their families, and communities.
“By being out of school, these Nigerian children have been exposed to real danger, violence, and even untimely death. Redirecting the proposed spending of N110 billion to address the situation of over 20 million out-of-school children across the country would improve access of Nigerian children to quality education.
“Education is both a human right in itself and an indispensable means of realizing other human rights. As an empowerment right, education is the primary vehicle by which economically and socially marginalized adults and children can lift themselves out of poverty and obtain the means to participate fully in their communities.
“Under international law, states are required to progressively implement socio-economic rights, including the right to quality education commensurate with the level of resources available. Gross misallocation of resources to the detriment of the enjoyment of the right to quality education can constitute a human rights violation.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Senate on Wednesday passed the bill to amend the Electoral Act of 2022 after delays, which almost pitched the institution against several Nigerians.
Last week, the upper chamber of the National Assembly headed by the Senate President, Mr Godswill Akpabio, set up a panel to look into the matter, with the directive to submit its report yesterday, Tuesday, February 3, 2026.
However, after the report was submitted yesterday, the red chamber of the parliament said it was going to take an action on it on Wednesday.
At the midweek plenary, the Senate eventually passed the Bill for an Act to Repeal the Electoral Act No. 13, 2022 and Enact the Electoral Act, 2025.
However, some critical clauses were rejected, including the proposed amendment to make is mandatory for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to transmission election results electronically from polling units to the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal.
The clause was to strengthen transparency and reduce electoral malpractice through technology-driven result management.
It also rejected a proposed amendment under Clause 47 that would have allowed voters to present electronically-generated voter identification, including a downloadable voter card with a unique QR code, as a valid means of accreditation.
The Senate voted to retain the existing 2022 provisions requiring voters to present their Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) for accreditation at polling units, and upheld the provision mandating the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) or any other technological device prescribed by the electoral umpire for voter verification and authentication, rather than allowing alternative digital identification methods as proposed in the new bill.
The Senate also reduced the notice of election from 360 days to 180 days, with the timeline for publishing list of candidates by INEC dropped from 150 days to 60 days.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has completed its timetable and schedule of activities for the 2027 general election, despite pending amendments to the Electoral Act by the National Assembly.
INEC Chairman, Mr Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja during a consultative meeting with civil society organisations.
Mr Amupitan said the commission had already submitted its recommendations and proposed changes to lawmakers, noting that aspects of the election calendar might still be adjusted depending on when the amended Electoral Act is passed.
He, however, stressed that the electoral umpire must continue preparations using the existing legal framework pending the conclusion of the legislative process and presidential assent to the revised law.
According to him, the commission cannot delay critical preparatory activities given the scale and complexity involved in conducting nationwide elections.
The development highlights INEC’s commitment to early planning for the 2027 polls, even as stakeholders await legislative clarity that could shape parts of the electoral process.
Yesterday, the Senate again failed to conclude deliberations on the proposed amendment to the Electoral Act after several hours in a closed-door executive session. The closed session lasted about five hours.
Lawmakers dissolved into the executive session shortly after plenary commenced, to consider the report of an ad hoc committee set up to harmonise senators’ inputs on the Electoral Act Amendment Bill.
When plenary resumed, the Senate President, Mr Godswill Akpabio, did not disclose details of the discussions on the bill.
Despite repeated executive sessions, the upper chamber has yet to pass the bill, marking the third unsuccessful attempt in two weeks.
The Senate, however, said it will not rush the bill, citing the volume of post-election litigation after the 2023 polls and the need for careful legislative scrutiny.
Last week, the red chamber of the federal parliament constituted a seven-member ad hoc committee after an earlier three-hour executive session to further scrutinise the proposed amendments.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency, (REA), Mr Abba Aliyu, is poised to attract an estimated $1.1 billion in additional private-sector investment to further achieve the agency’s targets.
He said that the organisation has received a $750 million funding in 2024 through the World Bank funded Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) project.
He added that this capital is specifically intended to act as a springboard to attract an estimated $1.1 billion in additional private-sector investment, with the ultimate goal of providing electricity access to roughly 17.5 million Nigerians through 1,350 new mini grids.
Mr Aliyu also said that the Nigeria Electrification Project (NEP) has already led to the electrification of 1.1 million households across more than 200 mini grids and the delivery of hybrid power solutions to 15 federal institutions.
According to a statement, this followed Mr Aliyu’s high-level inspection of Vsolaris facilities in Lagos, adding that the visit also served as a platform for the REA to highlight its decentralized electrification strategy, which relies on partnering with firms capable of managing local assembly and highefficiency project execution.
The federal government, through the REA, underscored the critical role the partnership with the private sector plays in achieving Nigeria’s ambitious off-grid energy targets and ending energy poverty.
Mr Aliyu emphasized that while public funds serve as a catalyst, the long-term sustainability of Nigeria’s power sector rests on credible private developers who are willing to invest their own resources.
He noted that public funds are intentionally deployed as catalytic grants to ensure that the private sector maintains skin in the game which he believes is the only way to guarantee true accountability and the survival of these projects over time.
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