A group of bipartisan lawmakers in the House of Representatives, under the aegis of the Save Nigeria Group, has called on the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, to immediately reconvene both chambers for an emergency session.
The lawmakers said the proposed session should address the under-implementation of the 2024, 2025 and 2026 Appropriation Acts, the constitutional controversy surrounding the State Police Constitutional Alteration Bill and allegations of off-budget expenditure.
They also called for urgent consideration of the non-release of capital funds to security agencies, the worsening security situation in the country and measures to restore public confidence in the rule of law and democratic governance.
The lawmakers made their position known in a statement issued on Friday and jointly signed by Hon. Awaji-Inombek Abiante (NDC, Rivers), Hon. Abubakar Kusada (APC, Katsina) and Hon. Mansur Jega (ADC, Kebbi), on behalf of the group.
The lawmakers stressed that they were neither an opposition platform nor acting at the behest of any political interest. Rather, they described themselves as legislators concerned about what they called the declining state of Nigeria’s democracy and the growing tendency of public institutions to subordinate constitutional provisions.
They warned that silence in the face of alleged constitutional violations and institutional failures could no longer be justified, arguing that Nigeria was confronted with disregard for the rule of law, chronic budget under-implementation, allegations of off-budget expenditure, economic hardship and worsening insecurity.
According to them, democracy cannot survive when constitutional procedures are treated as inconveniences and legal safeguards are replaced by political expediency.
The lawmakers cited the March 2025 declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State as one instance in which they alleged that constitutional procedures were not followed. They recalled that the National Assembly relied on voice votes despite Section 305(6) of the Constitution requiring the proclamation to be supported by a two-thirds majority of all members of each chamber.
They also raised concerns over the purported passage of the Executive State Police Constitutional Alteration Bill by the House of Representatives on July 23, 2026.
The lawmakers alleged that although the Speaker announced that 311 members had voted in favour of the bill, some members who were present during the proceedings claimed that there were not as many as 240 lawmakers in the chamber when the bill was considered.
They further alleged that the announced figure could only have been reached by including votes transmitted through WhatsApp by members who were absent from the chamber.
The lawmakers stressed that Section 9(2) of the Constitution requires the affirmative votes of not less than two-thirds of all members of each chamber before the Constitution can be altered.
They maintained that the announcement of voting figures by the Speaker could not substitute for strict constitutional compliance.
“The Constitution cannot be altered by presumption, improvisation or undisclosed voting arrangements,” they said.
They added that while State Police may be desirable, any such reform must be established through a lawful constitutional process.
On budget implementation, the lawmakers expressed concern over what they described as repeated budget extensions, rollovers and delays in capital expenditure throughout the 2024, 2025 and 2026 fiscal cycles.
They recalled that the Federal Government indicated in 2025 that only about 30 per cent of the 2025 capital budget would be funded, with approximately 70 per cent carried forward into 2026.
The lawmakers argued that the situation had gone beyond occasional administrative delays and had become a recurring breakdown in fiscal governance.
They also cited a previous comment by Senate Chief Whip, Mohammed Monguno, who reportedly described the failure to implement an Appropriation Act as a breach of the law capable of amounting to an impeachable offence.
“We agree with Senator Monguno that the deliberate or persistent refusal to implement duly enacted Appropriation Acts raises grave constitutional questions,” they said.
The lawmakers demanded comprehensive budget implementation reports for the 2024, 2025 and 2026 fiscal years, as well as full disclosure of capital releases to every ministry, department and agency.
They also called for the reconciliation of revenues collected against expenditure authorised by the National Assembly, an explanation for the failure to release duly appropriated capital funds and a joint parliamentary investigation into chronic budget under-implementation.
They further demanded appropriate constitutional action where deliberate or unjustifiable non-implementation of approved budgets is established.
On allegations of off-budget expenditure, the lawmakers said claims of misappropriation should be established through competent investigation and due process, but maintained that the reported discrepancies were sufficient grounds for immediate legislative scrutiny and forensic auditing.
They referenced a July 2026 report attributed to the International Monetary Fund, which they said indicated that public expenditure equivalent to about two per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product had not been recorded in recent official budgets, representing an estimated ₦8.83 trillion.
The lawmakers argued that the alleged unrecorded expenditure had contributed to a discrepancy between Nigeria’s declared fiscal deficit and its actual financing requirements.
They called for an independent forensic audit of all reported off-budget expenditure, insisting that public funds must be accounted for and spent in accordance with duly enacted Appropriation Acts.
On insecurity, the lawmakers expressed concern over the continued killing, kidnapping and displacement of Nigerians by terrorists, bandits, criminal gangs and other violent groups.
They also cited Monguno’s reported disclosure that some security agencies had received no capital releases despite the worsening security situation.
The lawmakers said reports indicated that approximately ₦20.27 billion, representing nearly the entire budgetary provision for the Presidential Air Fleet, had been released, while only a small fraction of the Nigerian Army’s allocation for security equipment was made available during the period under review.
They questioned why funding for the mobility and comfort of public officials appeared to receive more predictable releases than resources required by security personnel confronting terrorists and bandits.
Consequently, they called for the immediate release of duly appropriated capital funds to the Armed Forces, Nigeria Police Force, intelligence institutions and other security agencies.
The lawmakers also commended the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria for speaking out on insecurity, economic hardship, democratic decline and concerns over emerging one-party dominance.
They similarly commended the Supreme Council for Shari’ah in Nigeria for calling for caution, broader consultation and national consensus before the establishment of State Police.
The lawmakers argued that the prevailing circumstances did not permit the National Assembly to remain away from plenary while critical constitutional, fiscal, economic and security issues remained unresolved.
“We call upon the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to reconvene both Chambers immediately for an emergency session,” they said.
They maintained that the National Assembly was not merely an institution for passing executive bills and approving requests from the Presidency, but an independent arm of government constitutionally empowered to represent the people, defend the Constitution, appropriate public funds, conduct oversight and hold the Executive accountable.
The lawmakers stressed that they were not opposed to State Police, economic reforms or necessary public expenditure, but were against what they described as unconstitutional procedures, legislative shortcuts, unimplemented budgets, opaque expenditure and the continuing failure to adequately protect Nigerians.
