Only 1 of 48 bills sponsored by Enugu lawmakers was passed as others stalled mostly at first reading in one year of the 10th National Assembly
In the first year of the 10th National Assembly, lawmakers from Enugu state sponsored a total of 48 bills out of the 1,650 bills introduced in both chambers. Despite this contribution, there has been slow progress, with only one bill successfully passed by the House of Representatives.
A deeper dive into the analysis by OrderPaper, as the foremost parliamentary monitoring organization committed to promoting accountability and fostering a more informed citizenry that can demand quality representation based on measurable outcomes, shows a clear disparity in bill sponsorship between the Senate and the House of Representatives. Of the 48 bills, Enugu’s three senators sponsored six out of the 475 introduced in the Senate, while their House counterparts were responsible for 42 out of the 1,175 bills introduced in the House.
While lawmaking is a core duty of legislators, alongside representation and oversight, the ultimate goal is to see these bills progress and become laws. Bill sponsorship is not just about quantity but also the value, impact, and advancement of the proposed legislation. In this regard, the performance of Enugu lawmakers, especially in the Senate, raises concerns about the pace of their legislative activity.
The 11 Enugu lawmakers in the 10th Assembly are split between the Labour Party (LP) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), with six LP members and five PDP members. The overwhelming support for Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, in the 2023 elections led to the election of several LP lawmakers, raising public expectations of active legislative performance. However, their impact has been mixed.
In the House of Representatives, Rep. Nnamchi Paul (LP Enugu) led with 19 bills, most of which are stalled at the first reading or at the committee stage. Rep. Atu Chimaobi (LP Enugu) followed with 13 bills, while Reps. Sunday Umeha (LP Enugu) and Obetta Chidi (LP Enugu) sponsored five and one bill respectively, though none have progressed beyond the early stages of the legislative process.
In the Senate, Senator Okechukwu Ezra (LP, Enugu North) sponsored only one bill, which remains at the first reading. Senator Kelvin Chizoba (LP, Enugu East) failed to sponsor any bills in his first year.
On the other side of the divide made up PDP lawmakers in the state, Senator Osita Ngwu ( PDP Enugu West), a first term senator sponsored 5 bills which are either awaiting second reading or stalled at committee level.
Rep. Nnaji John sponsored 3 bills of which 1 has been passed into law by the House while the others are at the consideration stage. While Rep. Atigwe Chukwuemeka, a second term member sponsored only 1 bill with progression stalled at first reading.
Meanwhile, Rep. Oke George and Rep. Onwuegbu Anayo who are also members of the PDP failed to uphold one of their legislative duties having no bills to their names in one year of the 10th National Assembly.
STAR CHECK: Find out more about the Enugu State lawmakers in the National Assembly here
10th NASS Report Card: Read up on the performance scorecards of other senators, members of the House and specialised categories here
