Advocacy group: Senate must pass audit bill, special seats bill now

The Advokc Foundation has asked the senate to immediately pass the audit bill and the special seats bill for women, warning that further delays will deepen corruption, stall reforms, and entrench exclusion.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Habib Seidu, speaking for the foundation, said the senate’s inaction on the two bills has become a defining symbol of what it described as “poor leadership system and structure” in the upper chamber.

He said the failure to pass the audit bill has already contributed to the “misappropriation” of over ₦103.8 billion and $950,912.05 across 31 ministries, departments, and agencies, according to findings from the 2019 and 2020 auditor-general’s reports.

The foundation argued that comprehensive audit reform could generate ₦720 billion in economic benefits over five years through recovered revenues and improved tax compliance, while also improving the country’s international standing.

It also demanded the passage of the special seats bill for women, saying female political representation has been treated as “rhetoric rather than resolve” despite the successful implementation of similar models in Rwanda and Senegal.

According to Seidu, “If the current trajectory holds, Nigerians will settle for [the 10th Senate being remembered as a spectacle of scandal and stagnation, not a serious reforming chamber.”

The foundation linked its demands to broader concerns about stalled reforms and rising controversies around the senate’s conduct.

It cited the suspension of Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, senator representing Kogi central, after she accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of sexual harassment and abuse of power. The foundation said rather than ordering an independent ethical review, the senate suspended her for six months for “misconduct”.

“When women claim harassment and are then silenced rather than heard, what does that say to the Nigerian electorate?” the statement asked.

The foundation also raised alarm over delays in health financing reforms. Despite a pledge to allocate 15 percent of the national budget to health in line with the Abuja Declaration, the foundation said funding has remained between 4 and 6 percent, even as Nigeria accounts for 13 percent of global maternal deaths and millions are pushed into poverty by out-of-pocket spending.

Other stalled priorities listed include electoral reform — particularly the promised review of the appointment process for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) — and the gas flaring (prohibition and punishment) bill, which the foundation said is stuck in “legislative limbo”, costing the country an estimated $2.5 billion annually.

Citing data from its Promise Tracker NG platform, the foundation said its “Legislative Agenda Meter” shows the senate is “performing without progress”. The group said of the 28 tracked promises, only one — live streaming of proceedings — has been fulfilled, while 82 percent have not been tabled or discussed.

“When a legislature is more scandal-rich than reform-driven, it becomes what Nigerians now see: reform-proof,” Seidu said.

The foundation said there is still room for the senate to change its record by passing the audit bill and Special Seats Bill, increasing health sector funding, and expanding public access to legislative activities through digital platforms.

“If it fails to do these, the story of the 10th Senate will be written not in laws passed but in controversies remembered. History will recall a chamber that promised reform but delivered theatre,” the statement said.