ABUJA, Nigeria — The House of Representatives on Tuesday revoked referrals of several bills from eight standing committees after the committees failed to act within the required time limit set by the chamber’s rules.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

The decision followed the adoption of a motion moved by Rep. Francis Waive (APC–Delta) and seconded by Rep. Kingsley Chinda (PDP–Rivers). Lawmakers agreed that the affected committees had exceeded the 60-day period allowed to submit their reports without asking for an extension, in violation of House Standing Orders.

Under the House’s rules, any bill referred to a committee must be considered within 30 days. If no report is presented after 60 days, and no formal extension is granted, the committee is automatically discharged, and the bill is reassigned to the Committee of the Whole for further legislative work.

Waive, while leading the debate, said the move was necessary to prevent bills from stagnating at the committee stage. “The committees have not reported back to the House despite being referred to them for more than the required time,” he said. “This is against the provisions of our Standing Orders.”

Chinda, in support of the motion, said the House must enforce its own rules to ensure that legislative business moves efficiently. “We cannot allow bills to be trapped indefinitely in committees,” he added.

The committees affected by the decision include:

• Committee on Niger Delta Development Commission, assigned the Niger Delta Development Commission Act (Amendment) Bill, 2023 (HB.154).
• Committee on Banking and Regulations, assigned the Factoring Assignment and Receivables Financing (Establishment) Bill, 2023 (HB.516).
• Committee on Justice, assigned the Interpretation Act (Amendment) Bill, 2023 (HB.27).
• Committee on Information, National Orientation and Ethics, assigned the Nigerian Authors Trust Fund (Establishment) Bill, 2023 (HB.28).
• Committee on Poverty Alleviation, assigned the Poverty Alleviation and Skill Acquisition Centre (Establishment) Bill, 2023 (HB.75).
• Committee on Environment, assigned the National Park Service Act (Amendment) Bill, 2023 (HB.575).
• Committee on Federal Polytechnics and Higher Technical Institutions, assigned the Federal Polytechnics Act (Amendment) Bill, 2024 (HB.2114).
• Committee on Health Institutions, assigned the Chartered Institute of Public Health Studies (Establishment) Bill (HB.161).

The motion noted that none of the eight committees had submitted reports on their respective bills, even though the 60-day period had lapsed. Following the unanimous adoption of the motion, the House resolved to discharge the committees and recommit the pending bills to the Committee of the Whole for continued legislative action.

Parliamentary observers say the move reflects the House’s determination to speed up legislative work and prevent unnecessary delays. The Committee of the Whole allows all members to consider bills directly, bypassing smaller groups that may have been inactive.

Legislative analysts believe the decision could serve as a warning to other committees to handle their assignments promptly. “This shows that the House leadership is serious about enforcing its rules,” said one analyst familiar with parliamentary operations.

The discharged committees had not issued any public response as of press time.

The decision is expected to fast-track the processing of the affected bills, many of which touch on key areas such as education, environment, justice, and economic development. It also highlights ongoing efforts by the 10th House of Representatives to improve transparency and accountability in the lawmaking process.

Lawmakers said the move is not punitive but a procedural measure to keep the legislative calendar on track. With the bills now referred to the Committee of the Whole, they are expected to proceed to further readings and possible passage in the coming weeks.