Thursday, October 15, 2026 -Former Kogi West lawmaker, Dino Melaye, on Wednesday chided the leadership of the 10th National Assembly for allowing President Bola Tinubu to exercise executive power without sufficient legislative scrutiny.
Melaye specifically faulted Senate President Godswill
Akpabio and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, over their
handling of electoral reforms, budget implementation, constitutional amendments
and other issues involving the President and his administration.
The African Democratic Congress chieftain raised his
concerns at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday, where he dissected the
performance of the 10th National Assembly and questioned its independence in
dealing with matters of national importance.
He said, “A lifetime presidency does not begin with the
abolition of term limits. It begins when the institutions created to restrain a
President slack in duty.
“The President may request. Parliament must scrutinise. The
President may propose. Parliament may accept, amend or reject. The President
may exercise power. Parliament must ensure that power remains within the
Constitution.”
According to him, the legislature’s responsibility is not
merely to pass bills and approve government proposals but to scrutinise
executive decisions and ensure that the President operates within the limits of
the Constitution.
He said, “As a former lawmaker, I cannot continue to fold my
arms and watch as they continue to weaken the legislature for the executive.
“The more serious question is whether the 10th Assembly has
exercised sufficient institutional independence at precisely those moments when
independence mattered most. Cooperation is different from submission.”
The senator cited the July 2024 amendment to the Nigeria
Police Act, which allowed an Inspector-General of Police to remain in office
until the expiration of the tenure stated in his appointment letter,
notwithstanding the ordinary retirement provisions for police officers.
He lamented how the amendment was initiated by Tinubu and
passed by both chambers of the National Assembly through first, second and
third readings on the same day.
Melaye questioned why the bill was treated with such
urgency, arguing that “the speed of passage raised concerns about the level of
scrutiny given to legislation affecting the tenure of the head of the police.”
He said, “The amendment initially benefited former
Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, who had previously served as
Tinubu’s Chief Security Officer when he was Lagos State governor.
“Egbetokun left office in February 2026 and was succeeded by
Olatunji Disu, who had also served as Tinubu’s aide-de-camp during his tenure
as governor.”
Melaye, however, acknowledged that the appointments did not
by themselves establish wrongdoing or electoral manipulation.
The ADC chieftain also faulted the National Assembly’s
handling of the March 2025 declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State,
questioning whether the voting procedure used by both chambers established
compliance with the constitutional requirement for a two-thirds majority of all
members.
He argued that the legislature should ensure that
extraordinary presidential powers were subjected to the safeguards prescribed
by the Constitution.
On the controversy surrounding the Electoral Act 2026,
Melaye criticised the House of Representatives’ handling of a motion to rescind
its earlier decision on mandatory real-time electronic transmission of election
results.
The House had adopted the provision in December 2025 before
lawmakers reconsidered their position in February 2026.
The ruling had triggered protests and disorder in the
chamber before an executive session was held.
Questioning the handling of the proceedings, Melaye asked,
“What becomes of parliamentary representation when members say ‘nay’ and the
presiding officer declares ‘aye’ to please the President?”
He argued that parliamentary procedure should reflect the
decisions of elected representatives rather than undermine their ability to
hold the executive accountable.
The deputy director-general of Atiku Presidential Campaign
Council further criticised the National Assembly over what he described as
inadequate oversight of budget implementation and public expenditure.
He cited allocations to Service-Wide Votes of approximately
N4.08tn in 2024, N9.31tn in 2025 and N12.83tn in 2026, amounting to about
N26.22tn over the three budget years.
The senator said the figures raised questions about the
extent of legislative scrutiny of government spending and the transparency of
fund releases.
He acknowledged that the Budget Office had explained that
the 2026 allocation covered identifiable government obligations, including
personnel costs, recurrent expenditure and capital projects.
Melaye maintained that such explanations did not remove the
National Assembly’s responsibility to track public funds and ensure that
appropriated money was properly spent.
Efforts to get the Clerk of the National Assembly, Kamoru
Ogunlana, to react to Melaye’s allegation were unsuccessful.
As of the time of filing this story, Ogunlana neither picked
up the calls nor responded to the text message sent for clarification.
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