The Nigerian Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Tajudeen Abbas, have commended Nigerian security agencies for the successful rescue of abducted students in Oyo State.
They gave the commendation at the 2026 National Assembly Open Week in Abuja.
The Senate President, in his remarks, said that the rescue of the children showed that the federal government is not sleeping but working round the clock to ensure that Nigerians sleep with both eyes closed.
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He said that many officers were wounded while others paid the supreme price for the children to be rescued.
He noted that the 2026 open week is meant to keep people informed and is achieving that aim.
The Senate President also pointed out that the two chambers have never had any reason to fight.
“Sometimes, parliament may fight. They may struggle, but in the end they agree. But I would put it on record that the House of Representatives and the Senate have never had any reason to fight. This is the most peaceful and most productive assembly we have had since 1999”, Senator Akpabio said.
He also said that Nigeria no longer depends on crude oil to pay salaries as the president has transformed Nigeria from a mono-economy.
He commended members of the Diplomatic Corps and other stakeholders for supporting the National Assembly Open Week.
“Openness means more than allowing citizens to observe proceedings. It means assuring every Nigerian that no community is too remote, no voice is too quiet, and no corner of this Republic is too insignificant to deserve representation and attention”, Senator Akpabio revealed.
He urged Nigerians to pray and support their lawmakers always.
In his keynote address, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Tajudeen Abbas, said Nigerian citizens brought two thousand, seven hundred and forty-seven bills to the House in the last three years.
“The citizens of this nation submitted two thousand, seven hundred and forty-seven bills to this House. Of these, we passed three hundred and sixty-three, and seventy-two have already received presidential assent and become law.
These are not lines upon a page; they are measurable and lasting change. These figures represent the highest for any Assembly since 1999″, Mr Abbas said.
He said that the Open Week was conceived not as an exercise in self-congratulation, but as an act of accountability.
“Openness is not a courtesy this House extends at its pleasure; it is an obligation it owes to those it serves. In opening these doors, we affirm one enduring principle: that the making of your laws is your concern, and that you are entitled to observe it, to interrogate it, and to help shape it. No other arm of government submits itself to public examination in this manner, and we do so not with reluctance, but with conviction”, He stated.
He noted that the open week is designed not as a lecture but as a national conversation, and at every table, a place has been reserved for the citizens.
“Constructive criticism is critical to good lawmaking, and this House is open to input from the public. Let me also correct one belief that harms our democracy. Some assume, in good faith, that when a President signs a Bill quickly, then the legislature is a rubber stamp.
That is not how the work is done. Swift assent is usually the reward of months of committee work, completed long before the cameras arrive. Even the Congress of the United States has, in urgent moments, passed sweeping legislation in a single day, and no serious observer called it surrender.
Speed built on hard preparation is the mark of a Parliament that is working, not one that has stopped thinking”, Abbas stated.
He appealed to citizens to draw closer to the House and acquaint themselves with the true workings of the Parliament.
The theme of the 2026 National Assembly Open Week is “Three Years of the 10th National Assembly: Advancing Transparency, Inclusion and Reform”
