AdvoKC Foundation expresses deep concern over the continued inaction of the Nigerian Senate on the Audit Service Bill, 2023, a pivotal legislation that holds the key to strengthening transparency, blocking leakages, and securing Nigeria’s public finances.
Despite being introduced for first reading on October 5, 2023, the Bill has remained frozen, without debate, without progress, and without the urgency demanded by Nigeria’s current fiscal realities. This deliberate stagnation stands in sharp contrast to the Senate’s own Legislative Agenda, which prioritises tackling corruption, strengthening oversight, and modernising public financial management.
The Audit Service Bill is not just a procedural document; it is a structural reform that would finally replace Nigeria’s outdated 1956 audit law, empower the Office of the Auditor-General, institutionalise independence, and create mechanisms necessary to detect corruption before it drains critical public resources.
With the bill stalled, the consequences are immediate and severe, as weak oversight continues to drain resources from sectors that shape everyday life: funds meant to rehabilitate schools are swallowed by opaque systems with little accountability, leaving education to suffer; money earmarked for essential healthcare facilities and equipment is easily mismanaged without strong audit enforcement, deepening the crisis in access to care; and critical infrastructure (from rural roads to power projects) remains under-delivered, as Nigerians are denied value for money under an outdated and ineffective oversight framework.
Every day this bill remains idle, Nigeria loses resources that could transform lives. Citizens bear the brunt; students in collapsing classrooms, mothers travelling hours for basic healthcare, entrepreneurs stalled by failing infrastructure. Weak oversight is not an abstract governance flaw; it is a direct assault on development and dignity.
The Senate consistently speaks of its commitment to fighting corruption and improving governance. Yet the refusal to advance the nation’s most important accountability tool sends a troubling message: that entrenched inefficiencies are acceptable and that critical reforms can be quietly sidelined.
The Audit Service Bill is a cornerstone reform that aligns squarely with the 10th Senate’s Agenda on Good Governance, particularly its stated commitment to strengthening anti-corruption frameworks and legislative oversight, reflects Nigeria’s obligations to uphold global standards of public accountability, and reinforces the constitutional responsibility of the National Assembly to protect public funds and ensure they are used strictly in the public interest. To leave such legislation untouched is to undermine these commitments and weaken the Senate’s credibility in the eyes of Nigerians.
AdvoKC Foundation calls on the leadership and members of the Nigerian Senate to act decisively:
This is not a request for political favour. It is a demand for institutional integrity.
This moment is a defining test of the 10th Senate’s commitment to transparency and national development. A legislature that truly represents the people cannot allow an outdated 1956 audit framework to dictate the future of public accountability in 2025. Passing the Audit Service Bill will demonstrate courage, leadership, and alignment with the Senate’s own promise of good governance. Allowing it to stall will do the opposite.
History will remember the choices made now.