Electoral Act: Standing Down from Overriding Buhari Was Strategic, Says Senator Umar

Chairman, Senate Committee on Rules and Business, Senator Sadiq Umar, has said the standing down on Senate’s proposed veto of the Electoral Act Bill sent back by President Muhammadu Buhari, was purely strategic and has nothing to do with making any U-turn.

Umar, who represents Kwara North Senatorial district, however, said such action by the Senate would have been meaningless without a corresponding decision from the House of Representatives.

The senator, who spoke in Ilorin, Kwara State capital at the weekend, during the Correspondents’ Chapel Union of Journalists (NUJ) personality Programme tagged: ‘News Keg’ said, “The upper house was poised on overiding the President’s veto but learnt that the Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, had put off decisions on the matter till January.
“Overriding the president’s veto requires a two-thirds vote of both chambers, however, since the House of Representatives was in recess having on Tuesday adjourned until January 2022 without a decision on the issue, whatever the Senate may have chosen to do would be an exercise in futility.”

Buhari had last week, returned the Electoral Act Amendment Bill to the National Assembly, explaining why he couldn’t sign the bill into law.

There had since been backlashes from the public and across the political parties, especially, the heat on the lawmakers.
But explaining the Senate’s angle, Umar said their decision was strategic.
“We did not make a U-turn on the proposed law as some might want to believe. Our actions on the bill was a well thought out one. We consulted widely on the bill and made sure we carried stakeholders along, so we are ready to take the matter to the next level. We are not convinced by the president’s myriad of reasons why he couldn’t sign the bill into law.

“But while we were debating the matter the House of Reps did not do so. We learnt that the matter had been put off till next year to allow tempers to cool and make for further meaningful consultations. If we had gone ahead to override the president on the matter, it would have been of no effect, null and void.

“The House of Reps needed to back us for it to become law if we choose to override the president’s veto. Standing down on the matter was purely strategic and has nothing to do with making any U-turn,” the senator said.
He further used the platform to clear the air on a prevailing perception of the 9th Assembly being more of a rubber stamp for the executive.

Umar said senate’s duties were principally to make laws, engage in oversight functions and check the executive.
“But all these can be achieved without rancour”, adding that, there had been instances in the past, where the Senate disagreed with the President.

“One instance was given as that concerning the screening of Lauretta Onochie, former special assistant to the president as commissioner with Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC. We stood our ground on the matter but we sought a creative way of doing so without creating controversy,” he said.

Hammed Shittu in Ilorin.

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