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From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
Moves by the House of Representatives to override President Muhammadu Buhari over the re-amended Electoral Act suffered a setback, yesterday.
Buhari had refused to sign the alteration made by the House on Section 84 (8) of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill to allow statutory delegates participate in the nomination of candidates in primaries by political parties in the country.
Last Wednesday, Ben Igbakpa, while speaking on constitutional point of order, had called on the House to override the president’s veto, noting that the 30 days window within which the President is expected to assent the bill or decline assent had elapsed.
Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila, however, requested the lawmaker to come up with a motion seeking to override the President’s veto on the Electoral Act Amendment Bill.
Consequently, Igbakpa, at yesterday’s plenary, came up with a motion praying the House to invoke Section 58(5) of the 1999 Constitution ( as amended) and override the President’s veto on the Electoral Bill.
The lawmaker had barely finished reading the motion, when the deputy speaker, Idris Wase, who presided over plenary, said the move for the override was procedurally wrong. Wase noted that it was against the rules of the House for anyone to seek to override a presidential assent through a motion.
“For you to override on any bill, you need two third of members; not members sitting, but two third of members of the National Assembly. This is why I am guiding you and guiding the House. In our standing rules, we have procedure for overriding. You don’t come with a motion to override a bill. What you are supposed to do, is if you are interested; write to the speaker seeking for that to happen; then we go through the normal procedure as enshrined in our standing order.
“We wish to kindly beg you to step down your motion because that is not the right procedure and liaise with Chairman of House Rules to do the needful.”
Igbakpa, in his response, explained that he was following an earlier directive of the speaker.
“On Thursday, I came under constitutional order and the Speaker directed what I am doing.
“It means there is a miscommunication somewhere. What you are saying is still in order, we would follow it and ensure this is done. I am not doing it because it is against anybody. It is a constitutional order. It is a rule of law and I think it is why we are here,” Igbakpa said.
Thereafter, the deputy speaker ruled that the motion be stepped down for further consultations.
