From Adesuwa Tsan, Abuja
As the 10th Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria clocks two years, it invites both scrutiny and commendation. Constituted on June 13, 2023, following the general elections, the upper chamber began its term with heightened public expectations, amid Nigeria’s mounting fiscal strain, insecurity, and rising demand for good governance.
Presided over by Senator Godswill Akpabio, the 10th Senate comprises 109 Senators representing diverse political parties—predominantly the All Progressives Congress (APC), which holds the majority, alongside the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP), and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP). This review analyses the Senate’s legislative record, its high and low moments, oversight performance, public perception, and future prospects.
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Legislative Milestones – Passage of Key Bills
According to the data released by Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele in his midterm report, between June 2023 and May 2025, the 10th Senate introduced 983 bills, both executive and private-members, with 108 passed into law.
“In the 2024/2025 legislative year, for instance, 506 bills were initiated in the Senate alone compared to 477 in 2023/2024. This represents a 6.07 percent increase. Also, in the 2024/2025 legislative year, the upper chamber fully passed 83 bills into law compared to 25 in the previous legislative year,’’ he said.
“This represents truly a great feat that glaringly accounts for a 232% increase in the number of fully enacted legislations between 2023 and 2025. Against 13 in the 2023/2024 legislative year, the Senate dwelt with 26 executive bills in 2024/2025, invariably indicating a 100 percent upsurge. This record shows that 464 private member bills were initiated in 2023/2024 compared to 480 in 2024/2025.
“By 2024/2025 legislative year, 89 bills are awaiting first reading in the upper chamber as against 135 in 2024/2025; 45 awaiting second reading in 2023/2024 contrasted to 230 in 2024/2025; 215 appointments were confirmed in 2023/2024 compared 116 in 2024/2025 and 50 different petitions successfully resolved in 2023/2024 with 80 duly addressed in 2024/2025.”
Bamidele, specifically, listed some of the 108 bills passed into law to include the National Social Investment Programmes Act, 2023; Student Loan (Access to Higher Education) Act, 2024; National Minimum Wage Amendment Act, 2024; Investments and Securities Act, 2025; Regional Development Commission (Establishment) Acts, 2025 and the Tax Reform Bills, 2025, among others.
He noted that the Students Loan (Access to Higher Education) Act (Amendment) 2024, signed into law by President Bola Tinubu in April 2024, replaced the bureaucratic and restrictive model of 2023 Act, adding that it removed parental income requirements and shifted loan administration to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Daily Sun recalls that President Tinubu, during the signing, said: “Education is the tool of the future. With this reform, no Nigerian student will be left behind due to financial barriers.”
Another notable legislation is the Nigerian Data Protection Act. Passed in June 2023, this Act created the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) to regulate data collection and privacy. It aligned Nigeria with international digital standards, including the EU’s GDPR. The sponsor, Senator Osita Ngwu (Enugu West), stated during debate that “we must guarantee the rights of citizens in the digital space the same way we protect them in the physical world.”
Also passed by the Senate in July 2023, was the Electricity Act (Amendment), which decentralises electricity regulation by granting states and private entities the authority to generate, transmit, and distribute electricity. Senator Adetokunbo Abiru (Lagos East) called it “a game-changer for economic growth at the grassroots.”
In March 2024, the Senate passed amendments to the Constitution to devolve power over correctional services, railways, and state judiciary finances. However, some proposals—such as full state policing—failed to get the required two-thirds approval in at least 24 state assemblies. However, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele has assured that it will be revisited.
Another milestone bill passed is the Investments and Securities Bill which has been signed into law by President Bola Tinubu. It, among other things, provides a legal framework for the regulation of cryptocurrency dealing in Nigeria, and other provisions to reposition the money market for optimal performance.
But the most controversial so far, Tax Reform Bills, has been identified as the biggest achievement of the current assembly. Based on the proposal by the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee chaired by Taiwo Oyedele, the reforms streamlined the Companies Income Tax, Value Added Tax, and Stamp Duties Acts. In the words of Senate Finance Committee Chairman, Senator Sani Musa (Niger East): “This Senate has chosen revenue transparency and efficiency over ambiguity. Nigeria cannot fund development on a broken tax system.”
Legislative failures and controversies
A major criticism has been the Senate’s rapid confirmation of executive nominees without adequate scrutiny. On August 7, 2023, the Senate confirmed 45 out of 48 ministerial nominees despite petitions against several, including Bello Matawalle (Defence, state) and Abubakar Danladi. The opposition cried foul when no background vetting reports were disclosed.
Senator Okey Ezea (LP, Enugu North) publicly decried the process, saying “this is not a legislature; it is a conveyor belt. We cannot pretend to vet when we don’t even read the files.”
Also, the suspension of Senator Abdul Ningi in March 2024, represents one of the controversial moments of the 10t senate. The Bauchi Central lawmaker was suspended indefinitely after alleging that over N3 trillion was inserted into the 2024 budget outside of legislative consensus. Speaking on a BBC Hausa interview on March 9, 2024, he said “We discovered discrepancies in the budget passed and the one being implemented by the executive.”
The Senate, led by Akpabio, viewed it as a breach of privilege and suspended him. Civil society groups and opposition lawmakers condemned the move. Senator Ali Ndume (APC, Borno South) later said “even if Ningi was wrong, suspension without investigation damages our image.” He was later recalled.
Ndume himself became a topic of discussion after the Senate, acting on recommendation of the APC, was removed as Chief Whip of the 10th Senate. He was instantly replaced by the erstwhile Chairman, Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, Senator Tahir Monguno, who also hails from Borno State.
Ndume’s removal was connected with his comment that President Bola Tinubu had been caged at the villa and was not aware of the acute hunger being experienced by Nigerians.
The Akpabio–Natasha rift
What began as a private grievance escalated into one of the most consequential gender and power disputes in Nigeria’s Senate history. Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of Kogi Central alleged that Senate President Godswill Akpabio made unsolicited sexual advances during a private visit to his residence. According to her account, Akpabio implied that her legislative agenda could receive greater support if she reciprocated “special moments” and hand-holding. She says she rebuffed the offer—and that decision, she alleges, set the stage for months of retaliatory acts cloaked in procedural language.
The flashpoint came on February 20, 2025, when Natasha returned to plenary to discover her assigned seat had been changed without prior notification. She viewed this as both a personal affront and a calculated humiliation, and she refused to comply. In response, she was referred to the Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges. But it was her subsequent petition accusing Akpabio of sexual harassment that triggered national attention. Though the committee ultimately declined to investigate—citing a technicality that she signed her own petition—the dismissal only amplified public outcry.
On March 6, the Senate suspended Natasha for six months, citing violations of its standing rules: disobedience to presiding officers, refusal to vacate a disputed seat, and disruptive conduct. The Senate leadership insisted that the suspension had nothing to do with her allegations. But women’s rights groups and civil society organisations disagreed.
Protests erupted under the banner #WeAreAllNatasha, with rallies in Abuja, Lagos, Benin, and Kaduna. For many, the incident has come to symbolise the barriers women face in Nigeria’s highest political offices—not only in entering them, but in surviving them with dignity.
Natasha has since filed a N100 billion defamation suit against Akpabio and a Senate media aide, accusing them of maliciously damaging her reputation. In turn, Akpabio has maintained his innocence, dismissing the allegations as “a distortion of facts” and warning that such claims could discourage future appointments of women.
In a Senate where only four of 109 members are women, the Natasha–Akpabio saga is more than a personal feud. Many see it as a test of the institution’s capacity for self-correction, and limitations of power.
Budget credibility concerns
Despite adhering to the “January-December” budget cycle in 2024 and 2025, implementation remains weak. The Senate passed the N27.5 trillion 2024 budget in record time on December 30, 2023, but implementation updates have been sparse. Also, Lawmakers have been accused of inflating constituency projects, many of which lack transparency or impact.
Nigerians have also expressed disappointment with what they perceive as a detached and privileged Senate. Public outcry followed revelations in October 2023 that the Senate purchased luxury Toyota Land Cruisers for each senator at over N160 million per unit—despite economic hardship, naira devaluation, and subsidy removal.
SERAP (Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project) sued the Senate, while citizens protested online using hashtags like #SUVSenators and #EndPoliticalWast.
Ineffective Oversight on the executive, MDAs
Despite launching several probes into fuel subsidy utilisation, COVID-19 interventions, and procurement irregularities, the Senate has produced few results. In May 2024, the Public Accounts Committee, chaired by Senator Ahmed Wadada (Nasarawa West), accused MDAs of refusing to submit reports. Yet, no sanctions have followed.
Investigations also revealed that Capital budget implementation is not tracked as should be, leading to waste and leakages. During budget performance meetings, the slack in oversight functions by the lawmakers became apparent when the ministers and other heads of agencies begin to reel out poor performance statistics. Projects in rural areas often remain uncompleted or non-existent, despite budget allocations while independent audits have found several duplicated or bloated or non-executed contracts across federal constituencies.
One of the key moments in the 10th Assembly was the public declaration of the allegiance of the National Assembly to President Tinubu. During a budget presentation session in December, 2024, lawmakers in a joint session chanted ‘’on your mandate we shall stand’’. This act was condemned by political activists and other CSOs who noted that it is a reflection of the subservient status of the legislature to the executive.
Prospects for the remaining two years
With two years left, analysts say that the Senate can still shape a stronger legacy, with focus on Electoral Reforms, ahead of the 2027 polls.
Fast-tracking electronic voting and INEC independence bills, they say, is essential ahead of the 2027 elections.
Reforms to guarantee diaspora voting, early voting for security personnel, and stiffer penalties for vote-buying should be on the agenda. The Senate should also strengthen oversight, publish quarterly budget implementation reports, enforce penalties on non-compliant MDAs, and digitise oversight tools. Publishing voting records, opening committee hearings, and launching a Senate mobile portal for citizen feedback would improve public engagement. Senators should also hold constituency briefings to explain their legislative contributions.
At this halfway point, the 10th Senate has shown legislative productivity in some areas such as tax reform, constitutional devolution, and student loan access. However, its overall performance is dulled by weak oversight, and poor public perception. Whether the next two years will shift the narrative depends on the Senate’s willingness make the change.
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