APC Convention: Abbas Urges Tinubu, Governors To Back Re-election Of Lawmakers

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen has appealed to President Bola Tinubu and state governors to support the re-election of committed members of the National Assembly.

Abbas made the appeal in his remarks at the National Convention of the ruling All Progressives Congress(APC), held at the Eagle Square, Abuja Friday night.

The speaker lamented the high turnover of lawmakers which he said come at a cost to governance, to lawmaking, and to public resources spent on constant training and retraining.

“Mr. President, Your Excellencies, our Governors, I make this appeal with urgency. As we commit to continuity at the executive level, we must also secure stability within the legislature.

“The high turnover of senators and members over the years has come at a cost to governance, to lawmaking, and to public resources spent on constant training and retraining. Experience is lost. Institutional memory is weakened. Momentum is broken.

“We cannot continue to start every cycle afresh and expect consistent progress. The legislature is not separate from this journey. It is a partner in it. We legislate for the same reforms. We oversee the same programmes. We defend the same national interest.

“I, therefore, urge deliberate efforts to support the return of committed and performing legislators, so that together, the executive and the legislature can sustain this path and complete the work we have begun.

“This is the discipline of progress.This is how nations move forward without losing ground. We cannot change direction in the middle of the journey. We cannot abandon progress halfway. We cannot trade certainty for uncertainty.

“Our task as a party is clear. We must translate strength into results. We must translate policy into impact. We must translate leadership into trust,” he said.

Abbas also said President Bola Tinubu must continue the work he is doing for the country beyond 2027 for it to be completed.

“Today, the foundations are being reset. Revenues to states have improved. Transparency has increased. Infrastructure is advancing. Security coordination is strengthening. These are not isolated steps. They are part of a clear direction.

“Reform is not a sprint. Reform is a journey. Reform is a commitment. And that commitment requires continuity.

“This is why I say that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must continue this work beyond 2027. Not for sentiment. Not for convenience. But because the work has begun, and it must be completed. Because the foundation has been laid, and it must be built upon. Because the path has been chosen, and it must be sustained.

“And if we are to sustain that path, continuity must not be limited to the executive alone. It must extend to the legislature,” Abbas added.