Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, has disclosed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is expected to present executive bills to the National Assembly seeking special legislative seats for women and persons with disabilities (PWDs).

Abbas made this known when he hosted the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management, Prof. Justin Green, in Abuja.

Green was accompanied by the President/Chairman of Council of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Dr. Ike Neliaku; Secretary of Council, Prof. Emmanuel Dandaura; Member of Council, Moji Makanjuola; and Secretary-General of the African Public Relations Association, Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan, among others.

The Speaker said the proposed legislation on women’s representation would provide special seats for women in the National Assembly, separate from the regular seats contested during elections.

According to him, the initiative was part of efforts by the 10th House to improve women’s participation and inclusivity in the legislative process.

Abbas said the House had persuaded Tinubu to sponsor the executive bill and that the President had accepted the proposal.

“It is coming anytime from now because it is a request that he has taken to the Ministry of Justice to fine-tune and represent,” he said.

The Speaker also disclosed that efforts had been made to secure special representation for persons with disabilities at the national and subnational levels.

He said the President was similarly expected to transmit an executive bill to the National Assembly within the next few weeks to provide for such representation.

The speaker said: “We also initiated and facilitated through Mr President to also for the very first time include representation of the physically challenged in the National Assembly and the states of our nation.

“This time around, again, we are hoping that within the next few weeks, Mr President will also bring an Executive Bill that will enable the physically challenged people to have a seat in both the national and subnational levels of our parliaments.”

The Speaker said the initiatives were among the innovations introduced by the 10th Assembly since its inauguration in June 2023.

He also highlighted the National Assembly Open Week, an initiative through which the House opens its legislative activities to members of the public for scrutiny and engagement.

Abbas said the initiative had enabled Nigerians from different sectors to interact with lawmakers, committees and examine legislative activities, including motions and bills.

He expressed hope that future leadership of the National Assembly would sustain the initiative to make the parliament more accessible to Nigerians.

Abbas congratulated Green and the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management on the decision to hold its global gathering in Nigeria.

He said the event, which would bring participants from 126 countries to Nigeria, represented an opportunity to showcase the country to the international community.

The Speaker commended Green for his efforts over the years to promote Africa’s participation in the global public relations community.

He assured the delegation of the support of the National Assembly for the programmes scheduled to take place in Nigeria.

Earlier, Green commended Abbas for supervising inclusive legislation and governance that captures children, youth, women, and other categories of persons at the House.

The Global Alliance boss said he chose to speak from his heart after going through the 3-year scorecard of the 10th House under Speaker Abbas, noting “This didn’t just happen. This has been 10 years in the making.”

Green noted that Nigerians abroad are ambassadors of the country, recalling his pleasant experience with a Nigerian in Ireland, who showed love to him for visiting Nigeria.

The professor expressed confidence that when participants from 126 countries arrive in Abuja, “they will receive something that they have never ever received before.”

Neliaku noted that while the WPRF hosted a conference in Africa in 2007 – 19 years ago – it will be the first time it will be hosted alongside with the African Conference.

The NIPR President also emphasised how Prof. Green lobbied for Nigeria and Africa to get the hosting rights. He also noted how Africa now has six members of the Global Alliance under his leadership.