BEVERLY HILLS, January 26, (THEWILL) – The Presidency and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is not comfortable with the amendments to the Electoral Act, by the House of Representatives, which effected a change in the election order.
The proposed amendments, which came barely two weeks after INEC released the final timetable for the 2019 elections, differ from the current order that provides for the conduct of the presidential and National Assembly elections first, and governorship and state assembly elections conducted afterwards.
Going by the INEC timetable, the presidential and National Assembly elections were slated for February 16, 2019, while the state assembly and governorship elections have been scheduled for March 2, 2019.
However, the amendment to Section 25 of the Electoral Act, 2010, which the House members voted for on Tuesday, would see the National Assembly elections holding first, before elections into the state Houses of Assembly and governorship on a separate day, while the Presidential election would be conducted last to complete the general election cycle.
Specifically, the House amended Section 25 of the Principal Act and substituted it with a new Section 25 (1).
According to the amended version, the elections shall be held in the following order: (a) National Assembly elections (b) State Houses of Assembly and Governorship elections (c) Presidential election.
Similarly, Section 87 was amended by adding a new Subsection (11) on the order and timing for the conduct of primaries political parties.
“The primaries of political parties shall follow the following sequence: (i) State Houses of Assembly (ii) National Assembly (iii) Governorship, and (iv) Presidential.
“The dates for the above stated primaries shall not be held earlier than 120 days and not later than 90 days before the date of elections to the offices.”
The House also amended Section 36 to allow the running mates of candidates who die before the conclusion of elections to inherit the votes of the dead candidates and continue with the process.
THISDAY reports that the presidency was shocked by the amendments and considers them a deliberate ploy by the leaders of the National Assembly to influence the upcoming polls.
The fear in the presidency is that the bandwagon effect of the first set of elections into the National Assembly could affect the other elections.
Under the current order, the reverse is the case as the outcome of the presidential elections, in particular, has a bandwagon effect on the governorship and state assembly elections.
With the re-ordering of the primaries, the House has also made sure that the state governors minimise their influence on the conduct of primaries for the state and national legislatures, so that candidates vying for seats in the assemblies can in turn back them (governors) at their own primaries.
Quoting a source in the National Assembly, it was reported that the amendments may have been deliberate with growing concerns that Senate President Bukola Saraki and Speaker Yakubu Dogara may defect to another party,
“Remember that there are already moves to see to the impeachment of Saraki, who they fear may be planning to move to another party to actualise his presidential or even Senate ambition (with the way things are going in the APC), and Dogara may not be able to retain his seat under the APC also as he is at war with the governor of his state,” the source said.
“So the fear is that the two men may move together to another party, which is being tagged the ‘Third Force’, and the amendment may have the impact of helping that ‘force’ win more seats.
“As it is, the Senate has set up its conference committee to harmonise the two versions (Senate and House amendments) but in the presidency, the feeling is that the committee would go with the House’s amendments.
“And this will put the president in a spot if he declines to sign, as he may be perceived to be against free and fair elections even though he has been a beneficiary.”
Meanwhile, the Senate had announced the composition of its conference committee to reconcile the differences in the amended version of the Electoral Act passed by the House of Representatives and the version passed by the Senate last year.
Members of the Senate conference committee, as announced by Saraki, include Senators Shehu Sani, Biodun Olujimi, Hope Uzodinma, Dino Melaye and Peter Nwaoboshi.
The conference committee is to be chaired by the chairman of the Senate Committee on INEC, Senator Suleiman Nazif.
The Committee is expected to meet with the House to harmonise the Senate version of the Electoral Bill with that of the lower chamber before it is sent to the President for his assent.
