Nigeria’s Senate is set to reconvene on Tuesday after an extended recess, with a crowded agenda dominated by long-delayed debates on national security and electoral reforms that citizens have been anxiously awaiting.
The upper chamber postponed its initial resumption date from Sept. 23 to Oct. 7, 2025, prolonging its annual break by two weeks and delaying deliberations on several key national issues.
Among the pending items are the proposed National Security Summit, amendments to the Electoral Act, the 2025 Constitution Alteration Bill, and the long-stalled National Assembly Budget and Research Office Bill — a two-decade-old proposal intended to strengthen fiscal oversight through independent budget analysis.
In an internal memo signed by Chinedu Akubueze, Chief of Staff to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, lawmakers were informed of the shift, which he described as regrettable.
“This is to respectfully inform Distinguished Senators that the resumption of plenary sitting of the Senate, earlier scheduled for Tuesday, September 23, 2025, has been shifted to Tuesday, October 7, 2025. Any inconvenience this short notice may cause is deeply regretted,” the memo read.
Although the Senate leadership did not offer an official explanation, legislative sources told The PUNCH that the extension was meant to allow lawmakers to fully participate in Nigeria’s Oct. 1 Independence Day activities.
The delay has stirred public frustration, as the Senate faces mounting pressure to address worsening insecurity and push forward electoral reforms ahead of the 2027 polls.
The proposed Security Summit, led by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele and a 20-member ad hoc committee, is expected to outline new strategies to counter rising violence across the country.
“No amount of investment in infrastructure will yield meaningful results without peace and stability,” Bamidele said at the committee’s inaugural meeting in June.
Also awaiting debate is the Constitution Alteration Bill (SB. 855), sponsored by Senator Sunday Karimi (Kogi West), which seeks to amend sections of the 1999 Constitution widely criticised as outdated and unfit for Nigeria’s evolving democracy.
Senate President Akpabio has frequently defended the chamber’s record, noting in June that the 10th Senate had already considered 844 pieces of legislation, including 26 executive bills, with another 499 awaiting second reading.
“It is a record that has not been held by any Nigerian Senate in two years,” Akpabio said during a Democracy Day joint session attended by President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.
Critics, however, argue that the Senate’s frequent adjournments and prolonged recesses have slowed momentum on key reforms, casting doubt on lawmakers’ commitment to tackling the country’s deepening security, electoral, and economic crises.