National Assembly Transmits Amended Electoral Bill To Buhari For Assent

The National Assembly has transmitted the reworked Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill to President Muhammadu Buhari for assent.

The Senior Special Assistant to the president on National Assembly Matters,  Senator Babajide Omoworare, made this known on Monday via a statement he personally signed after the transmission.

The statement, titled ‘Transmission of the Electoral Bill 2022,’ read, “The Clerk to the National Assembly, Mr. Olatunde Amos Ojo, has transmitted the authenticated copies of the Electoral Bill 2022 to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, on 31st January 2022.

“This was done in accordance with the provisions of Section 58 (3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) and the Acts Authentication Act Cap. A2 LFN 2004.

“Mr. President had withheld assent to the Electoral Bill 2021 transmitted to him on 19th November 2021. The electoral bill was thereafter reworked by the National Assembly and both the Senate and the House of Representatives passed the same on 25th January 2022.”

Recall, the federal parliament had amended the electoral bill for the second time by concurring on consensus candidacy and setting fresh conditions for political parties in the nomination of candidates for elections.

The president vetoed the electoral bill and sent it back to the National Assembly over the restriction of political parties to direct primary, insisting on the direct or indirect.

The Senate, however, not only added indirect primary but also consensus adoption of candidates for elections by a political party.