The Senate has amended its standing orders to impose a strict 14-day deadline for incoming senators to take their oath of office, after which they risk having their seats declared vacant.
Under the newly adopted rules, any senator-elect who fails to take the Oath of Allegiance and Oath of Membership within 14 legislative days from the Senate’s first sitting may lose their position. The chamber would then notify the Independent National Electoral Commission to conduct a fresh election in the affected senatorial district.
The provision states that while a senator-elect who cannot be sworn in on the first sitting remains eligible to take the oath at a later date, that window closes after 14 legislative days. Failure to meet the deadline could trigger the Senate to take appropriate steps to declare the seat vacant, subject to constitutional provisions.
The amendment is widely seen as an attempt to prevent prolonged vacancies arising from litigation, political disputes, or delayed appearances by elected lawmakers after inauguration.
In a related development, the Senate retained a controversial provision restricting eligibility for presiding officers to only ranking senators who would have completed at least two full terms. Under the amended rules, a senator cannot contest for Senate President or Deputy Senate President unless they have served eight years across two terms, with one of those terms immediately preceding the election.
This provision effectively shuts out first-time senators and limits the contest for the Senate presidency largely to returning, ranking lawmakers in the current 10th Assembly. By implication, reelected senators in the 10th Assembly who secure another term in 2027 have been pre-qualified to run for presiding positions, alongside other considerations such as zoning.
However, the Senate reversed one aspect of its earlier amendment. Lawmakers walked back a provision that would have required senators-elect to be sworn in before participating in the election of presiding officers. Following concerns over possible constitutional inconsistencies, the chamber reverted to its long-standing practice where senators-elect may vote for the Senate President and Deputy Senate President before taking their oaths.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Legal Matters and Human Rights, Adeniyi Adegbomire, explained that members felt the constitution uses the word “may,” and reverting to the old order would avoid unnecessary controversy.
Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele also clarified that requiring oath-taking before voting could create constitutional tensions, particularly with Section 52 of the 1999 Constitution.
Other amendments approved by the Senate include changes to sitting hours, committee representation across geopolitical zones, suspension procedures, and the creation of new committees on Livestock Development, Reparations and Repatriations, as well as various regional development commissions.
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