The Senate and House of Representatives resumed plenary on Tuesday after an extended recess, but adjourned again until October 13 after one sitting.
The National Assembly has resumed plenary after an extended recess of more than two months, only to adjourn again until October 13, 2026.
The Senate and House of Representatives had adjourned on July 23 for their annual recess and were initially scheduled to resume on September 15. The resumption was later postponed to September 29 to allow the completion of rehabilitation work in the legislative chambers.
Both chambers returned to legislative business on Tuesday, September 29, before separately approving an extension of the implementation period for the capital component of the 2025 budget.
Lawmakers extend 2025 capital budget again
The National Assembly extended the implementation deadline for the capital component of the 2025 Appropriation Act from September 30 to December 31, 2026.
The extension is the fourth since the original deadline expired. The implementation period was first moved from December 31, 2025, to March 31, 2026, then to June 30 and later to September 30.
In the House, Majority Leader Julius Ihonvbere said the extension was necessary because economic challenges had made it difficult to complete the implementation of the capital component within the existing timeframe.
He said the extension would prevent the expiry of the implementation period from affecting ongoing capital projects.
The Senate similarly approved the extension. Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele said it would provide additional time to complete capital projects for which funds had already been released and support the completion of critical national projects.
Another two-week adjournment
After completing the day’s legislative business, both chambers adjourned plenary until October 13.
The Senate also announced plans to hold a security summit on October 12 and 13, the latest break means lawmakers returned from an extended recess and spent only one plenary sitting before adjourning again.
The National Assembly’s earlier resumption was delayed by two weeks to allow contractors to complete renovation and structural rehabilitation works in the chambers.
What the Constitution says about sitting days
The extended recess has also renewed attention on the amount of time federal lawmakers spend in plenary.
Section 63 of the 1999 Constitution provides that the Senate and House of Representatives shall each sit for a period of not less than 181 days in a year.
It remains unclear whether the two chambers will meet that constitutional threshold when their official sitting days for 2026 are eventually calculated.
For now, lawmakers are scheduled to return to plenary on October 13, when legislative business is expected to resume after the latest adjournment.
