From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
President Muhammadu Buhari will at about noon on Friday assent to the long-awaited Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2021, Presidency sources confirmed on Wednesday.
Twenty six civil society organisations (CSOs) had on Tuesday held a national day of protest calling on President Buhari to sign the electoral act amendment bill into law.
The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, had in a statement recently said Buhari having received the amended Bill on January 31, 2022, has till March 1st to assent to the bill as prescribed by the constitution.
Sources in the presidency, however, revealed that arrangements had been finalized for the President to sign the amendment bill into law on Friday, finally putting all anxieties to rest.
The source, who spoke on conditions of anonymity, said “all these anxieties will disappear by Friday afternoon.
“He will be signing the bill around noon of that day.
“I believe he has taken his time so that the Act can be as unassailable as much as possible.”
President Buhari had withheld his assent to the bill in November 2021, citing the cost of conducting direct primary elections, security challenges, and possible manipulation of electoral processes by political players as part of the reasons for his decision.
He, however, gave some conditions to give his assent, prompting the lawmakers to re-work the bill which initially led to the emergence of two versions from the green and red chambers of the assembly.
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