A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, has asked
the National Assembly to veto the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill if the
President, Muhammadu Buhari, refuses to sign.
In a statement, the Lagos-based lawyer said the absence of
Buhari should not affect the passage of the bill into law.
This is as the 30-day period within which the President is
expected to assent or withhold his approval to the bill ends today. The bill
was transmitted to the President on November 19, 2021 after both chambers
passed it.
He said, “On November 13, 2021, the National Assembly forwarded the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill to the President for his assent. The President did not assent before he traveled to Turkey, thus truncating the reforms encapsulated in that historic Bill.
“There are many innovative provisions in the Bill that make
it attractive as a tool to oil our democratic experiment, especially the issues
of electronic transmission of election results and direct primaries for the
political parties.
“From the events monitored on the floor of the National
Assembly and indeed the public hearings conducted, it is clear that Nigerians
prefer that results of elections be transmitted electronically by INEC in order
to avoid the recurring decimal of manipulation and rigging.
“In the same vein, direct primaries for the choice of
candidates of political parties will eliminate the hydra-headed issues of
godfatherism and the imposition of candidates.
“Under and by virtue of section 58 (5) of the 1999
Constitution, where the President withholds his assent and a Bill is again
passed by each House by two-thirds majority, the Bill shall become law and the
assent of the President shall not be required.
“I urge the National Assembly, in the national interest, to
invoke its constitutional powers to pass the Electoral Bill and save our
democracy from imminent collapse. As the elected representatives of the people,
our legislators should act in the interest of their respective constituencies.
“Democracy is about the people, so it is essential that
politicians who made promises of electoral reforms while canvassing for votes
should honour their vows to the people, when they get into office.
“Nigerians expect the National Assembly to shake off the
toga of being a rubber stamp entity and use this golden opportunity to assert their
autonomy.
“This matter is important and pressing enough to warrant the
suspension of the current recess of the National Assembly for the purpose of
passing the Bill and in that wise, override presidential assent. Nothing is too
much to give to salvage our hard-earned democracy.”
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