15 senators, 149 reps didn’t sponsor a bill in one year — OrderPaper

OrderPaper, Nigeria’s foremost parliamentary monitoring organization and public policy think-tank, has indicted the National Assembly for not doing enough on the passage of legislation.

Founder and Executive Director of OrderPaper, Oke Epia, stated on Wednesday that the first year of the 10th National Assembly saw a surge in sponsored bills, but with a slow pace of progress. Many of these bills were recycled from the preceding 9th assembly.

A performance report card set for release this week reveals that over half of the bills sponsored in the Senate from June 2023 to May 2024 were recycled from previous assemblies. Nearly one-third of the bills in the House of Representatives during the same period were also resurrected.

OrderPaper’s analysis shows that of 475 bills introduced in the Senate, only 19 have been passed, while 416 are stuck awaiting second reading. Similarly, of 1,175 bills in the House, only 58 have been passed, with 967 awaiting second reading.

The report indicates that 15 senators and 149 House members (12.6% of total membership) did not sponsor any bills, with 62% of these being first-time lawmakers.

The report also noted a lack of focus on critical national issues, such as agriculture, food security, and security, which constitute a small percentage of the total bills. Despite challenges in these sectors, many bills have not progressed past the first reading.

Oke Epia stressed that while there has been an increase in the number of bills sponsored, citizens must focus on the quality and impact of these bills. He urged for action from legislators, citizens, and parliamentary partners to push for impactful legislative governance.

Programme Executive at OrderPaper Nigeria, Joy Erurane, added that this year’s report involved in-depth sectoral analysis of bills, highlighting the imbalance in sectoral coverage and the trend of bill sponsorship without follow-through.

She noted that genuine legislative commitment is needed to avoid what has been termed “legislative plagiarism.”