By Agbenu Oyale, Abuja
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila on Tuesday said the House of Representatives will revisit the Electoral Act Amendment Bill which was declined assent by President Muhammadu Buhari.
He said this after reading the President’s letter, even as he noted that despite the differences of opinions on the Bill, the House of Representatives and the entire National Assembly, worked to pass the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill.
He said: “As it is now, that bill has not received presidential assent, and it falls to parliament to decide the best way forward.
“When we return in the new year, we will resume our efforts to reform the electoral system in our country. And we will do it together.
“That is what the Nigerian people expect of us, and we will do our duty for God and country.
“Whichever way it pans out, we must not throw out the baby with the bath water and must deliver a credible and enduring electoral system to Nigerians. Every law is a living document and as long as it has breath, it must survive”.
The President had in a letter sent to the House dated December 13th, 2021 read by the Speaker informed the House about the reasons he declined asset to the bill.
The President stated: “Rt Honourable Speaker may wish to note that, the conduct of elections for the nomination of party candidates solely via direct primaries as envisaged by the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2021 has serious adverse, legal, financial, economic and security consequences which cannot be accommodated at the moment considering our nation’s peculiarities”.