The Federal government of Nigeria is composed of three distinct branches: legislative, executive, and judicial.
The National Assembly is established under Section 4 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which confers on it, the powers to make laws for the peace, order and good governance of the Federation.
The National Assembly is bicameral in nature. This means that it consists of two chambers – the Senate and House of Representatives.
There are 109 elected members in the Senate consisting of three Senators from each State and one from the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
The House of Representatives is made up of 360 members representing constituencies of nearly equal population.
The Nigerian legislature has 3 functions:
Lawmaking: The NASS makes laws for the peace order and good governance of the federation (section 4 of the Constitution)
Oversight: NASS has extensive oversight powers. These include control over the spending of federal funds, the national budget, the authority to provide advice and consent for appointments to key executive positions, the power to approve and scrutinize bills including the power to impeach the President and his deputy.
Representation: As part of their representative responsibilities, members of the NASS routinely identify and direct the attention of the executive arm of government to the peculiar needs in their various constituencies.
The 9th Assembly consists of the members of the Senate and House as elected and inaugurated to carry out legislative functions from 2019 to 2023.
The 9th Assembly leadership structure is made up of the following:
Principal Officers of the Senate
The Senate President – Sen. Ahmad Lawan
Deputy Senate President – Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege
Majority Leader – Sen. Yahaya Y. Abdullahi
Deputy Majority Leader – Sen. Ajayi R. Boroffice
Chief Whip – Sen. Orji Uzor Kalu
Deputy Whip – Sen. Aliyu S. Abdullahi
Minority Leader – Sen. Enyinnaya H. Abaribe
Deputy Minority Leader – Sen. Emmanuel Bwacha
Minority Whip – Sen. Philip Aduda
Deputy Minority Whip – Sen. Sahabi Ya’u
Principal Officers of the House of Representatives
Speaker – Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila
Deputy Speaker – Hon. Ahmed Wase
Majority Leader – Hon Alhassan Ado Dogowa
Deputy Majority Leader – Hon Peter Akpatason
Chief Whip – Hon Mohammed Tahir Monguno
Deputy Chief Whip – Hon Nkeiruka Onyejeocha
Minority Leader – Hon. Ndudi Elumelu
Deputy Minority Leader – Hon. Toby Okechukwu
Minority Whip – Hon. Gideon Lucas
Deputy Minority Whip – Hon. Adesegun Adekoya Abdul Majid
The President of the Senate is the Presiding Officer in the Senate and Chairman of the National Assembly. The Deputy Senate President carries out the functions of the Senate President in his/her absence.
The Chief Whip is elected to maintain the order and decorum of the House and also discipline among members of the majority party.
The Majority Leader is the Leader of the House elected by members of the Majority Party. The role includes serving as a spokesperson for the majority, managing and leading the business of the House. The Deputy Majority Leader assists the majority leader in the performance of his/her functions.
The Minority Leader is elected by members of the minority party to represent their interests and maintain discipline among them while the Deputy Minority Leader assists the minority leader in the performance of his/her functions.
All members of the National Assembly are elected directly every four years and at the expiration of a period of four years the existing body of members shall each be dissolved, commencing from the date of the first sitting of the House.
The 9th Assembly was inaugurated on the 11th of June 2019 and the assembly will run its course until the 11th of June 2023.
The Senate and the House of Representatives each sit for a period of not less than one hundred and eighty-one (181) days in a year.
The power of the National Assembly to make laws shall be exercised by bills passed by both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
There are 3 senatorial districts in each of the 36 states in Abuja and only 1 senatorial district in the Federal Capital Territory making 109 senatorial districts in total.
For purposes of allocating seats in the House of Representatives, Nigeria is divided into 360 Federal constituencies, each of which is represented by one member in the House.
