The Nigerian Senate has passed the Central Gaming Bill, 2025, a significant piece of legislation intended to repeal the National Lottery Act of 2005 and its 2017 amendment.
The bill, which cleared its third reading yesterday, aims to establish a new regulatory framework for online and remote gaming across the country. It now awaits concurrence from the House of Representatives and presidential assent to become law.
Proponents of the bill argue that it provides a necessary modernization of Nigeria’s gambling laws to keep pace with the rapidly expanding digital market.
Lawmakers supporting the measure, including Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, assert that the bill will streamline compliance, improve transparency in revenue collection, and enhance consumer protection against fraudulent practices. The legislation effectively seeks to centralize control over remote gaming activities that cross state lines.
However, the bill has sparked significant conflict regarding constitutional authority. State-level regulators, represented by the Federation of State Gaming Regulators (FSGRN), along with constitutional lawyers, argue that the bill is an overreach of federal power.
They contend that under a 2024 Supreme Court ruling, the power to regulate lotteries and gaming resides exclusively with the state governments, rendering federal attempts to regulate the sector invalid.
Critics have described the legislation as an affront to judicial independence and warned that it could trigger legal conflicts between the federal government and state authorities.
Despite these warnings from legal officials, including the Lagos State Attorney General, the National Assembly appears poised to finalize the bill, paving the way for the creation of a central gaming body.
Barau Jibrin, Deputy Senate President
“A bill for the Act to repeal the National Lottery Act Number Seven of 2005 and the National Lottery Amendment Act Number Six of 2017 and to enact the Central Gaming Bill to regulate the operation and business of all forms of online and remote gaming across the geographical boundaries of the federation units and beyond the borders of Nigeria.”
The Federation of State Gaming Regulators (FSGRN)
“An open affront to the supremacy of the Constitution and the authority of the Supreme Court.”
Lawal Pedro (SAN), Attorney General and Commissioner for the Ministry of Justice, Lagos State
“As the Chief Law Officer of Lagos State, it is both my constitutional duty and responsibility to draw the nation’s attention to the voyage of unconstitutionality embarked upon by the National Assembly to enact Act to Regulate the Operation and Business of All Forms of Online and Remote Gaming Across the Geographical Boundaries of the Federating Units and Beyond the Borders of Nigeria.”
