Tinubu Withholds Assent to Two National Assembly Bills, Cites Fiscal and Policy Concerns

President Tinubu has withheld assent to two National Assembly Bills, citing fiscal and policy concerns.

NewsOnline Nigeria reports that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has declined to sign two recently passed bills from the National Assembly, citing provisions he described as fiscally risky, inconsistent with federal policy, and potentially harmful to good governance.

The decision was conveyed in two separate letters read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during Tuesday’s plenary session as lawmakers reconvened from their annual recess.

Akpabio commended the President for his detailed scrutiny of the bills, saying the Senate would revisit the legislation to ensure alignment with national policy and fiscal discipline.

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“This demonstrates the President’s steady hands and attention to detail. It now falls on us to re-examine the bills and ensure they align with fiscal responsibility and good governance,” Akpabio stated. Both bills were subsequently referred to relevant Senate committees for further legislative review.

The first rejected legislation was the Nigerian Institute of Transport Technology (NITT) Establishment Bill, which sought to expand the institute’s powers and funding mechanisms. While acknowledging the bill’s good intentions, President Tinubu objected to certain provisions, particularly one that would authorize the institute to collect 1% of all import and export freight levies—a measure he said was “onerous and unfair to businesses” and inconsistent with the government’s tax harmonization policy.

He also raised concerns over clauses permitting the institute to borrow up to ₦50 million without presidential approval and invest public funds, despite being a non-revenue-generating agency. “Such clauses pose serious fiscal and governance challenges and, if allowed, would set a dangerous precedent,” the President warned.

The second bill Tinubu declined to sign was the National Library Trust Fund (Establishment) Amendment Bill, 2025. The President explained that certain provisions in the bill conflicted with existing government policies on public sector financing, taxation, remuneration, and tenure regulation. He cautioned that enacting the bill in its present form could “create an unsustainable precedent against the public interest.”

In both letters, President Tinubu urged the Senate to address the identified inconsistencies and return revised versions for his consideration. “I hope that the Senate will take the necessary steps to fix the identified issues with this legislation,” the President wrote. The development underscores Tinubu’s hands-on approach to legislative review and his administration’s emphasis on fiscal prudence, policy alignment, and institutional accountability.