A civil society organisation, Nigeria Integrity Watch (NIW), has released an assessment of the 10th Senate's legislative record, describing it as significant while urging Nigerians to judge the chamber by the substance of its work rather than by political sentiment. The group said the Senate passed 106 bills as of April 23, 2026, covering areas such as tax reform, education, and security.
What the 10th Senate Passed
According to NIW, data from the National Assembly's legislative tracker showed that the Senate, which was inaugurated in June 2023, had processed hundreds of bills and passed 106 of them as of April 23, 2026, as reported by the Nigerian Tribune. The group highlighted several key pieces of legislation, including an amended Electoral Act, which President Bola Ahmed Tinubu signed into law in February 2026, aimed at strengthening how elections are conducted and managed in Nigeria.
The assessment also pointed to the 2024 budget as a milestone in restoring the January-to-December fiscal cycle, as well as tax reform legislation signed by the president in 2025, which NIW said was designed to restructure Nigeria's tax administration and improve revenue generation. Other areas listed include the Student Loan Act, the Minimum Wage Bill, and legislative work on electricity supply, digital infrastructure, and data governance.
Oversight and Constitutional Review
NIW added that the Senate had screened executive nominees, exercised oversight on government borrowing, and monitored major infrastructure projects. Security legislation and an ongoing constitutional review exercise covering state policing, fiscal relations, and local government administration also featured in the group's assessment.
The statement, signed by Dr John Samuel Nangi on Saturday, September 19, on behalf of the organisation, noted that the 10th Senate recorded what it described as a significant legislative legacy through interventions in electoral reform, fiscal governance, economic transformation, security, education, and institutional oversight.
Legacy Depends on Implementation, NIW Says
Despite its broadly positive reading of the Senate's record, NIW was careful to note that legislation alone cannot change the lives of ordinary Nigerians. The organisation said the real measure of the 10th Senate's contribution lay in whether the laws it passed were properly funded, effectively administered, and held to account by institutions and the public.
NIW said its assessment was intended to provide a factual basis for evaluating the Senate's role in Nigeria's democratic and development process as the country approaches the 2027 general elections. The group added that the lasting legacy of the Akpabio-led Senate would depend on the quality of the laws enacted, the institutions those laws created or reinforced, and the extent to which implementation had translated into concrete improvements for Nigerians.
In a related development, President Bola Tinubu recently named Senate President Godswill Akpabio as the deputy director general South I of the All Progressives Congress (APC) 2027 Presidential Campaign Council, as the ruling party formally organises its push to secure a second term for the Nigerian leader. Akpabio, a former Akwa Ibom state governor, is a key political associate of Tinubu. The 223-member Presidential Campaign Council will serve as the main body driving Tinubu's re-election effort, covering political mobilisation, stakeholder engagement, and the planning and coordination of campaign activities across the country.
