In spite of the protests that trailed the amendment of the Electoral Act and re-ordering of the sequence of the 2019 general elections, the controversial bill is to be transmitted to President Muhammadu Buhari for his assent today. The Senate was, last Wednesday, thrown into turmoil when 10 of its members staged a walk out from the plenary after they failed to stop the adoption of the Conference Report of the Joint Committee on Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Act Amendment Bill.

The commotion was between those considered to be pro-Muhammadu Buhari senators and others who are supposedly not supporting his re-election bid in 2019. However, New Telegraph learnt authoritatively that the protest and the conspiracy theories built around it were of no effect as the leadership of the parliament has resolved not to back down.

A competent source in the parliament confirmed that as at last Friday, the harmonised version of the bill was already in the office of the Clerk to the National Assembly preparatory to its transmission to the President. According to our source, the adoption of the bill by both chambers of the National Assembly stands as the parliament cannot, going by its rules, be pressured to go back on an issue upon which it had already taken a decision.

“There is nothing again about that bill. On Tuesday, they will discuss other issues. As far as they (legislators) are concerned, they are going to transmit that bill to the President. As at Friday, the bill was already at the office of the Clerk to the National Assembly where they were trying to put finishing touches to it. I am sure that by Monday (today) the bill will be with the President. Any other thing that will happen will depend on whether the President signs it or returns it to the National Assembly.

“There is no special thing on it. Several bills have been sent to the President and whether he signs them or not, he will certainly write the National Assembly on his decision. “So far, the Electoral Act Amendment Bill has been passed and is no longer in the court of the National Assembly.

The bill will be transmitted to the President for his assent. If he so desires, let him sign it, if he doesn’t sign it, let him write to the National Assembly and say he is with holding his assent,” he said. Political analysts who have followed the drama keenly are of the opinion that the transmission of the bill lends credence to the earlier position of some lawmakers who threatened that the National Assembly would override the President’s veto should he fail to assent to the bill.

A member of pro-Buhari Group of Senators who spoke to New Telegraph last night said his group had done the much they could to stop the bill, adding that they expected other organs of the ruling party to also do something.

“We’ve done the much we can, except if the other stakeholders in the party (APC) may want to pick it up from where we stopped. As far as I am concerned, the Senate President ruled on the bill based on the pitch level of the ayes and nays, so I don’t think we should blame him. But if the bill is transmitted, then it will be left to the President to sign or withhold his assent,” he said.

The Conference Committee of the Senate and the House of Representatives had, last week, adopted the report on the bill, approving the reordering of the sequence of the 2019 general elections, contrary to what INEC had prescribed on the election timetable.

The House of Representatives’ Committee on Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill had, in its amendments to the 2010 Electoral Act, included Section 25(1) into the Act by reordering the sequence of the elections to start from the National Assembly, followed by governorship and state assembly elections before the presidential election which is now to come last. In the INEC timetable, the presidential and National Assembly elections are to hold on February 16, 2019 while that of Governorship and House of Assembly are to take place on March 2, 2019.

Presenting the report for Senate consideration, the Chairman of the Joint Committee of the Senate and the House on INEC,Senator Suleiman Nazif, explained that Conference Committee harmonised some differences in the two versions of the bill as passed by both chambers as well as adopted the new agreed positions.

The lawmaker further explained that, the committee, in considering the House version in sections 25(1) and 8 (9A, a and b) dealing with sequence of elections and political parties primaries, unanimously adopted the provisions in its entirety to ensure orderliness. Being a conference committee report, the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, put the motion for adoption of the report straight for a voice vote without subjecting it to any further debate.

.newtelegraph