There is confusion over the number of bills introduced and passed by the Senate in the last two years, as both the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and Majority Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele doesn’t seem to have an idea over the correct figures.
Both leaders have issued contradictory figures claiming to have been received and passed by the upper chamber of the National Assembly.
Akpabio had during the joint session of the National Assembly on Thursday to mark the 2025 Democracy Day, said a total of 96 out of 844 bills introduced in the Senate were passed in two years.
Bamidele, however, said the bills passed were 108 out of 983 bills received by the Senate. This makes the bills passed 12 more higher than the figure given by Akpabio, and 139 more bills received.
The Senate Leader announced his figure in a statement on Sunday to commemorate the Senate’s mid-term performance.
“No fewer than 983 bills – both executive and private members- were introduced between June 13, 2023 and June 12, 2025, 108 of which were fully passed into laws within the timeframe,” the senate leader said.
However, the figure clearly contradict those earlier presented by the senate president on their performance when he said: “This commitment is reflected in its extraordinary output: a total of 844 bills have been introduced within its first two years—an unprecedented figure”.
The discrepancy highlights the inconsistency, inaccuracy, and lack of transparency in Nigeria’s legislative record-keeping.
Unlike Akpabio, who did not provide detailed data, Bamidele offered a breakdown of the Senate’s activities regarding bill deliberation within the two legislative years.
“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 per cent 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.
“This represents truly a great feat that glaringly accounts for a 232 per cent 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 per cent of 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 contrared 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 explained.
Some of the bills passed, according to Bamidele are 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
The senate leader particularly emphasised the significance of the Student Loan Act, which he claimed has improved access to tertiary education and helped reduce dropout rates nationwide.
Similarly, he said the passage of the Tax Reform Bills signified the Senate’s commitment to addressing Nigeria’s fiscal challenges and restructuring the tax system to promote ease of compliance, increase investor confidence, and stimulate national economic growth.
Looking ahead, Bamidele assured Nigerians that the Senate would focus on electoral and judicial reforms and the review of the Nigerian Constitution.
