The Nigerian Senate has made a significant alteration to its internal regulations, amending its standing orders to restrict eligibility for the office of the Senate President solely to members of the 10th National Assembly. This development follows a lengthy closed-door session where lawmakers agreed on new criteria emphasizing parliamentary hierarchy and experience.
New Eligibility Criteria
Under the revised rules, only senators who have served in the national assembly are permitted to contest for principal offices. According to Channels TV, the new law stipulates that at least one of the two required terms must be the immediate term preceding the nomination, effectively narrowing the field of contenders.
The amended Order 4 of the Senate reads: "Nomination of Senators to serve as Presiding Officers shall be in accordance with the ranking of Senators and shall be strictly adhered to. The order of ranking are (i) former President of the Senate, (ii) former Deputy President of the Senate, (iii) former Principal Officers of the Senate, (iv) Senators who had served at least one term of four years, (v) Senators who had been members of the House of Representatives, and (vi) in the absence of i to v, Senators elected into the Senate for the first time."
Implications for the 10th Assembly
This means that only senators currently serving under Senate President Godswill Akpabio's leadership in the 10th Assembly who secure re-election in the 2027 general elections will be able to contest for the Senate presidency and other principal offices. The Senate stated that the development aims to strengthen adherence to the tradition of ranking within the Upper legislative chamber.
