Senate declines Buhari’s request to amend newly-signed Electoral Act Amendment

Senate, Wednesday, voted against President Muhammadu Buhari’s request to amend the 2022 Electoral Act, to allow political appointees seek elective positions without resigning their appointments.

The Executive Communication which was a subject of controversy among Senators due to a court order was eventually put to vote on Wednesday but a majority of them voted overwhelmingly against it.

That controversial aspect of the Electoral Act 2022, is clause eighty four (84) subsection twelve (12).

It would also be recalled that a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Monday, March 07, 2022, barred President Muhammadu Buhari, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and the Senate President from tampering with the newly amended Electoral Act 2022.

The Judge in a ruling on an ex-parte application by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said the Electoral Act, having become valid law could not be altered without following the due process of law.

Barely hours after assenting to the harmonised Electoral Act Amendment 2022, President Buhari, in February, asked the National Assembly to immediately correct a section of the document that contravenes the rights of political office holders to vote or be voted for in political party conventions and congresses.

President Buhari made the call on penultimate Friday, shortly after appending his signature on the Amended Electoral Act.

“Section 84 (12) constitutes a disenfranchisement of serving political office holders from voting or being voted for at Conventions or Congresses of any political party, for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election in cases where it holds earlier than 30 days to the National Election.

Quoting the section, the President said: “84(12) No political appointee at any level shall be voting delegate or be voted for at the Convention or Congress of any political party for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election,” the President noted it had introduced qualification and disqualification criteria that ultra vires the Constitution by way of importing blanket restriction and disqualification to serving political office holders of which they are constitutionally accorded protection.

“The practical application of section 84(12) of the Electoral Bill, 2022 will, if assented to, by operation of law, subject serving political office holders to inhibitions and restrictions referred to under section 40 and 42 of the 1999 Constitution as amended.

“It is imperative to note that the only constitutional expectation placed on serving political office holders that qualify, by extension, as public officers within the context of the constitution is resignation, withdrawal or retirement at least 30 days before the date of the election.”

The Nigerian leader noted that it would not be right for the country’s democratic processes to overstretch beyond constitutional limits.

“Hence, it will be stretching things beyond the constitutional limit to import extraneous restrictions into the constitution on account of practical application of section 84(12) of the bill where political parties’ conventions and congresses were to hold earlier than 30 days to the election,” he added.

President Buhari said The Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2022, passed by the National Assembly, holds a lot of promise for improving the election processes in the country, with the introduction of new technology, and efforts to engender clarity and transparency.

“I am making this bold declaration because I foresee the great potentials of the Bill. Worthy of note include the democratic efficacy of the Bill with particular reference to sections 3, 9(2), 34, 41, 47, 84(9), (10) and (11) among others.

“This, however, cannot be said about one provision as contained in the proposed Bill, which provision constitutes a fundamental defect, as it is in conflict with extant constitutional provisions.

“Arising from the foregoing, with particular regards to the benefits of the Bill, industry, time, resources and energy committed in its passage, I hereby assent to the Bill and request the Nationally Assembly consider immediate amendments that will bring the Bill in tune with constitutionality by way of deleting section 84(12) accordingly,’’ he said.