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Reps Mull Reserved Seats for Women, Persons with Disabilities in Constitution Review

Published

1 year ago

July 8, 2025

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…as House record surge in legislative activity, over 2,200 bills introduced

By Gloria Ikibah

In a significant move under the ongoing constitution amendment process, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Tajudeen Abbas, has revealed that the 10th House is actively considering allocating 10% of elective seats to women and 5% to persons with disabilities in the National Assembly.

Speaking during the second Legislative Open Week, Abbas explained that this initiative, once enacted into law, would result in an additional 82 lawmakers—comprising 55 in the House of Representatives and 28 in the Senate.

He emphasised that those occupying the reserved seats would have full legislative rights, including equal access to privileges and committee assignments, ensuring their seamless integration into the nation’s legislative framework.

He said: “We are considering 109 amendment bills across various sectors, including electoral, judicial, legislative, and inclusive governance. Twelve electoral reform bills address the scheduling of all general elections on a single day, establish independent candidacy, and create a dedicated commission for local government elections. Judicial reforms encompass 21 bills designed to streamline appellate processes and strengthen judicial independence”.

Speaker Abbas said further that a central feature of the House’ inclusive governance proposals is the introduction of constitutionally guaranteed reserved seats for women and persons with disabilities.

He added: “Under the draft amendment, ten per cent (10%) of seats in both the Senate and the House of Representatives would be set aside for women, apportioned by state to ensure regional balance.

“These seats would be filled through direct elections on separate ballots, with staggered terms to promote continuity and mentorship. Five per cent (5%) of seats would be reserved for persons with disabilities, with candidates nominated by accredited disability advocacy organisations.

“Historical data underscores the urgency of this reform. At independence in 1960, women occupied less than one per cent of seats in the National Assembly. By 1990, their share rose only to two per cent. With the restoration of democracy in 1999, women held 3.9 per cent of House seats and four per cent of Senate seats. Today, despite constituting half the population, women’s representation has barely moved beyond these levels.

“International experience shows the impact quotas can have. Rwanda and Senegal utilised constitutional provisions to increase female representation from under 5% to over 30% in a single cycle. South Africa’s voluntary party quota has delivered steady gains, though its success depends on enforcement. By embedding reserved seats into our Constitution, we will break the cycle of stagnation.

“This mechanism will accelerate progress towards gender parity, enrich our legislative debates with diverse perspectives, and ensure that the National Assembly truly reflects the people it serves. The 10th House will pursue vigorous collaboration with the State Houses of Assembly and all stakeholders to ensure that the Bill on the reserved seat is passed and becomes part of our constitution”.

The Speaker disclosed that within its first two sessions, the 10th House introduced a total of 2,263 bills—demonstrating a marked rise in legislative engagement. Of these, 1,478 have progressed to second reading, 135 await further House action, 339 are under review by Standing Committees, while five have been rejected during debates.

He noted that the overwhelming majority—2,204—were sponsored by individual members, alongside 26 Executive bills and 33 from the Senate seeking concurrence. According to him, these figures underscore a consistent growth in the National Assembly’s legislative capacity since 1999.

As of June 30, 2025, 237 bills had been passed and forwarded for presidential assent, with 55 already signed into law. Among the key legislative achievements are the recently enacted Tax Reform Laws—including the Nigeria Tax Act, Nigeria Tax Administration Act, Nigeria Revenue Service Act, and the Joint Revenue Board Act—which aim to streamline tax processes and unify revenue collection at all government levels.

“The Electricity Act (Amendment) 2023 transfers electricity to the Concurrent Legislative List, empowering both federal and state governments to legislate on power generation, transmission, and distribution. The Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act 2024 establishes the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFund) as an independent body to expand access to tertiary education among others.

The Speaker said the House has received 621 petitions from citizens on wrongful terminations, rights violations and other grievances, adding that 24 of the petitions have been fully treated, with reports ready, 30 dismissed for lack of merit while the remaining 567 are at various stages of the hearing and investigation process.

Speaker Abbas said the House will continue to advance security reform with bills for state policing and the devolution of powers over natural resources and infrastructure, adding that the House is considering 14 bills aim to strengthen institutions, enforce fiscal accountability, and improve governance frameworks. Citizens’ rights feature in four human rights bills that align domestic law with international standards.

Speaking on Executive–legislative cooperation which he said remains essential, the Speaker thanked the President for always consulting the National Assembly on key policy matters, and for respecting the input throughout the legislative process.

According to Abbas, the 10th House recognise the challenges before Nigerians such as economic constraints, high turnover rate, and public expectations for immediate improvements which require resilience.

He added that, “his willingness to engage with our debates and incorporate our recommendations has strengthened governance and reinforced the balance of powers that underpins our democracy.

“We will continue to balance fiscal realities in our budget appropriations, prioritise critical sectors, and ensure that we deliver fully on our legislative agenda. Similarly, we will continue to invest in research support, modern library facilities, and peer-learning initiatives to strengthen the institution”.

The President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio commended the House for the achievement in the past two years and for opening their House for the Nigerians people, assuring that the Senate will follow the footstep of the House, while plans are on to organize a joint open week with the Green chambers.

Akpabio said the event was necessary to educate the Nigerian people on the functions of the lawmakers as a way of reducing the large turnover rate in the parliament, adding that in the Senate, about 80 percent of Senators ad new to the parliament.

He said this huge turnover rate of lawmakers affects institutional memories in the legislature and even the effective performance of their functions.

According to hm, many Nigerians are unaware of the actual function of the legislator and has often piled pressure on them to build roads, provide employment and other activities meant for the executive, adding that when the lawmaker fail to deliver on these areas, they are regarded by their constituents as failures, thereby affecting their efforts at returning to the National Assembly.

Akpabio said further that because the current is not at loggerhead with the Executive, but choose to engage in dialogue in arriving at definite positions does not mean that the Assembly is a rubber stamp Assembly, adding that together with the Executive, they have always put the interest of the Nigerian people first.

Former Speaker, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara Charged the lawmakers to continue to promote the spirit of transparency and accountability, saying it is only when you are accountable that you can hold others accountable.

Another former Speaker, Rt. Hon. Patricia Ette reminded the lawmakers of the need to constantly return to their constituencies to engage with the people, adding that there was the need to take a cue from the open week because their main office is not in Abuja, but in their constituencies.

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Fire Guts Kano Market, Destroys Six Houses, Shops, Warehouses

Published

49 minutes ago

September 5, 2026

EMMANUEL AGAJI

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A late-night fire has destroyed six houses, several shops and storage facilities at Kofar Wanbai Market in Kano State, with property worth millions of naira reportedly lost.

The fire broke out at about 9:43pm on Friday in the Babban Layi, Yan Robobi section of the market, according to the Kano State Fire Service.

The agency’s Public Relations Officer, Saminu Abdullahi, confirmed the incident in a statement issued on Saturday.

He said a distress call from a Principal Fire Superintendent, Usman Idris Fagge, prompted the immediate deployment of firefighting teams from the state headquarters and stations at Rijiyar Zaki, Sabon Gari, Government House and Bompai.

Abdullahi said firefighters arrived to find the blaze had engulfed parts of a two-storey building measuring about 120 by 125 feet and used mainly as plastic shops and storage facilities.

He identified the affected houses as Gidan Alhaji Sani, Gidan Sani Muhammad, Gidan Alhaji Kwa Kwa, Gidan Alhaji Shafi’u and Gidan Alhaji Sulaiman.

According to him, the fire started on the upper floor before spreading to two shops on the ground floor, two on the first floor, six permanent stores and four temporary units on the top floor.

Firefighters eventually brought the inferno under control and prevented it from spreading to adjoining sections of the busy market.

Preliminary findings by the fire service indicated that the blaze was caused by a faulty solar system installation.

The Director of the Kano State Fire Service, Sani Anas, urged traders and residents to observe fire safety measures, install smoke detectors and ensure that functional fire extinguishers are available in commercial and residential premises.

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Moroccan Wife Has Been Away From Me for 11 Months — Husband Accuses Sheikh Gumi

Published

52 minutes ago

September 5, 2026

EMMANUEL AGAJI

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A Kaduna-based man, Nasiru Musa Idris, has accused Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi of allegedly keeping his Moroccan wife away from him for about 11 months after he took her to the cleric for counselling.

Idris made the allegation in an interview with RFI Hausa, claiming he took his wife to Gumi after the cleric requested to counsel her because she was young.

According to him, his wife stopped responding to his calls after the meeting, while attempts to have security agencies investigate the matter were allegedly frustrated.

“For 11 months now, my wife has been in his hands through injustice and ill-treatment. He has no relationship with her; she had never known him. The only place they knew each other was through me,” Idris alleged.

Gumi, however, has denied the allegation, insisting that the Moroccan woman had already left Nigeria and was in Morocco with her parents.

The cleric, who declined to provide further details because the matter is before a court, also threatened to sue Idris for defamation.

“But I will take him to court for defamation against me. As for the issue of the girl, she has already left Nigeria and she is in Morocco happily with her parents,” Gumi said.

Idris said he first met Gumi at a pharmacy on Isa Kaita Road in Kaduna while he was with members of his family and later introduced his Moroccan wife to the cleric.

He said his wife had no prior connection with anyone in Nigeria before he travelled to Morocco to marry her, adding that the marriage was conducted with the approval of her parents and relevant authorities.

“The Moroccan girl had never known anyone in Nigeria and nobody knew her except through me. I went to seek her hand in marriage in her country, and we had an engagement with the approval of the embassy and the approval of her parents,” he said.

The dispute, according to Idris, escalated after Gumi allegedly asked him to obtain another marriage certificate from a Sharia Court despite the couple already having marriage documents issued in Morocco and Nigeria.

“I told him that I did not agree with the marriage certificate he told me to obtain. Later, he went to the Sharia Court in Malali and asked them to issue one to him,” Idris alleged.

He said he submitted several documents supporting the marriage, including papers from Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Nigerian embassy in Morocco, alongside other documents and a police character report.

Idris further alleged that Gumi later sought the dissolution of the marriage and interfered with efforts by security agencies to investigate the matter.

He urged the cleric to honour a police invitation and submit himself to questioning.

“My complaint is that he should come forward and answer the invitation of the police so that an investigation can be conducted. If he is right, there is nothing stopping him from going to the authorities to clear his name,” he said.

Idris also rejected claims that his wife’s mother travelled to Nigeria and took her daughter back to Morocco.

He maintained that he personally processed the documents that enabled his wife to travel to Nigeria, insisting that he only took her to Gumi because he trusted the cleric and believed he was seeking to help the young woman.

“Because I trusted him, I took her there. From then on, whenever I called, she did not answer the phone,” he alleged.

Meanwhile, Malam Nasiru Ayuba, popularly known as Dan Agaji, chairman of the Volunteers of Sultan Bello Mosque, Kaduna, and Gumi’s personal assistant on special assignment, denied that the cleric kept Idris’ wife in his house.

“The allegation that Malam kept his wife in his house is not true. It was the woman herself who went to Malam to ask him for help,” Ayuba said.

He claimed that the Moroccan woman approached Gumi over a personal matter and sought his intervention, after which the cleric took the matter to court.

“She brought the matter herself because she knew what she was going through. Th

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Watch Wike delivering his speech at civic reception held in his honour today

Published

2 hours ago

September 5, 2026

EMMANUEL AGAJI

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Today sons and daughters of Ikwerre LGA in Port Harcourt held a civic reception in his honour.

The message was as they declare that on election day, before 11 am, Rotimi Amaechi will tell his people to boycott the election because he knows there’s no way he’ll defeat us. If he wins his village, Ubima, then he has won the election. That’s if he will win his own polling unit.

Watch below: