NATION

Reps Leader faults Buhari for withholding assent to amended electoral law

The Majority Leader of the House of Representatives Alhassan Ado-Doguwa has faulted President Muhammadu Buhari’s decision to withhold assent to the amended electoral law.

The National Assembly had amended Section 84(4) the Electoral Act to allow statutory delegates to vote at the national convention of political parties.

The statutory delegates comprise the president, vice president, national assembly members, state assembly members, members of national working committees of political parties, state party chairmen and secretaries, local government chairmen and councillors.

Ado-Doguwa blamed some interests in the presidency for President Buhari’s refusal to grant assent to the amended law.

“Some people are trying to mislead the innocent old man in the name of constitutional democracy to which they have no knowledge at all.

“Declining assent to the amended clause of the Electoral Act on statutory delegates would amount to a calculated design to ambush the presidential primaries come 30th May/1st June 2022, which I believe Nigerians will not accept,” he said.

Similarly, the Deputy Minority Leader, Toby Okechukwu, said the president’s action is a ploy to “short-change the parties”.

“(The) ambush is not necessary. The parties had already made provisions for statutory and ad-hoc until there was a notice of that omission. So, it is actually trying to fulfil what the parties had already arranged for,” he said.

President Buhari returned to the country on Saturday evening after a two-day trip to Abu Dhabi.

The ruling All Progressives Congress has fixed its primaries for May 29, while the opposition Peoples Democratic Party will hold its’ a day before –May 28.

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button