By John Ikani
The Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly rejected the fresh move proposed by President Muhammadu Buhari to amend a contentious section 84 (12) of the newly signed Electoral Act 2022.
The lawmakers, in a voice vote on Wednesday, unanimously opposed a motion that the bill is read and considered for a second time.
Before a voice vote on the bill, which nays had it, several lawmakers spoke against going ahead to amend the Act and urged that the Senate abide by a court ruling, which stopped the National Assembly from tampering with the electoral law.
The bill is a response to a request from President Muhammadu Buhari.
He had, in February, asked the National Assembly to expunge Clause 84(12) of the Act. He made the request shortly after signing the legislation into law.
The clause reads: “No political appointee at any level shall be a voting delegate or be voted for at the convention or congress of any political party for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election.”
The president said the clause constituted a disenfranchisement of serving political office holders from voting or being voted for at conventions or congresses of any political party, for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election in cases where it holds earlier than 30 days to the national election.
A Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday barred President Buhari, the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and the Senate President from tampering with the Act.
The judge, Inyang Ekwo, in a ruling on an ex-parte application by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said the Electoral Act having become a valid law could not be amended without following the due process of law.
Specifically, the court restrained President Buhari, the AGF and the National Assembly and other defendants in the suit from removing section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act or preventing it from being implemented for the purpose of the 2023 general elections.
But the Senate President Ahmad Lawan on Tuesday said the court ruling would not stop the National Assembly from amending the Electoral Act 2022.
He said the court ruling violated the provisions of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) on Separation of Powers.
Efforts by Lawan and Ovie-OmoAgege to ensure that the bill scaled second reading was vehemently opposed by Senators Eyinnaya Abaribe, Adamu Alier and Smart Adeyemi among others.
The bill was later defeated through voice votes.
