Itodo Daniel Sule
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, on Tuesday abruptly adjourned plenary amid growing unease among lawmakers over unresolved grievances and internal discontent.
At the start of plenary, the Speaker read an announcement from a member before directing the House Leader, Prof Julius Ihonvbere, to move a motion for the House to dissolve into an executive session. The motion was adopted, and the House went behind closed doors for nearly an hour.
However, when the session resumed, the speaker called for another motion, this time to adjourn proceedings until next Tuesday, without providing any reason for the decision.
The sudden adjournment meant that a long list of scheduled legislative business was left unattended, including 30 bills for first reading, nine committee reports for presentation, eight bills for second reading, six motions on notice, and seven reports slated for consideration.
The spokesperson of the House, Akin Rotimi, did not respond to inquiries on the reason behind the abrupt adjournment as of press time.
Lingering grievances and growing tension
Credible sources, however, told Daily Trust that the adjournment may be linked to mounting frustration among members over the poor implementation of the national budget and non-payment of allowances due to lawmakers.
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“I know there are a number of unresolved issues which members are not happy with,” one lawmaker said under condition of anonymity.
According to multiple sources familiar with the development, beyond the poor funding of constituency projects, lawmakers are also unhappy with what they described as unfulfilled commitments by the executive arm of government.
“For instance, before the passage of the Tax Reform Bills, several promises were made to members. There were also assurances to lawmakers who defected to the ruling party. As we speak, these commitments have not been met, and that’s part of what’s fuelling the agitation,” one source said.
The source added that many first-term lawmakers fear they could lose their seats in 2027, as they lack completed constituency projects to showcase to their constituents, a situation worsened by poor budget releases and dwindling access to executive support.
Background of recent disruptions
The abrupt adjournment comes barely a week after the House suspended plenary for one week following protests by local contractors who barricaded the entrance to the National Assembly complex over unpaid project funds dating back to 2024.
The decision to suspend sittings followed a motion of urgent national importance moved by Minority Leader Kingsley Chinda, who decried the plight of local contractors owed by the Federal Government despite repeated assurances of payment.
Chinda said the protest, which disrupted access to the complex, stemmed from the government’s failure to enforce President Bola Tinubu’s directive to the Ministers of Finance and Budget to settle the outstanding debts.
“You recall that our local contractors, our brothers and sisters, besieged the National Assembly today, protesting that they have not been paid for jobs completed under the 2024 budget. This non-payment has caused untold hardship, and it is our duty as Parliament to take a stand,” he said.
Following the motion, the House directed the Ministers of Finance, Wale Edun; Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu; and the Accountant-General of the Federation, Shamsudeen Ogunjimi, to clear all outstanding payments within seven days and fully commence implementation of the 2025 budget.
However, hours later, the House reversed its decision and announced it would reconvene earlier than planned.
House reverses decision, reconvenes early
In a statement issued later that evening, the House spokesperson announced that plenary would resume on Wednesday, November 5, contrary to the earlier resolution to adjourn until the following week.
“This decision follows positive developments arising from engagements and interventions across various levels of government concerning issues that informed the earlier adjournment, particularly matters relating to contractors’ agitations and the non-release of funds under the 2024/2025 budget,” the statement read.
The Clerk of the House, Dr Yahaya Danzaria, conveyed the development in an internal memo, noting that the early resumption would allow the leadership to brief members on progress made in resolving the issues.
Upon resumption on Wednesday, however, the House again went into a lengthy closed-door session during which several lawmakers reportedly expressed anger over the continued non-release of funds for the 2024 and 2025 budgets, particularly those affecting their zonal intervention (constituency) projects.
After the session, members only considered one item on the Order Paper before adjourning plenary once again, this time to Tuesday, deepening concerns that growing dissatisfaction within the Green Chamber may be reaching a breaking point
