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Tag: Electoral Act

  • BREAKING: Senators vote one after the other on electronic voting

    BREAKING: Senators vote one after the other on electronic voting

    Senators are currently being called on one after the other on the floor of the Nigerian Senate to decide on electronic voting and electronic transmission of election results.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, representing Abia North has already voted against electronic voting.

    Senator Kalu, in voting against electronic voting, stressed that there is no network in his village.

    Meanwhile, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, representing Abia South, voted for electronic voting.

    Also, Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, representing Delta Central has also voted “NO” against electronic voting.

    Senators are called on to vote one by one on electronic voting and electronic transmission of election results following a rowdy session on the floor of the Senate.

    The Senators disagree over Electronic Voting and an Amendment of the Electoral Act to allow the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to approve whether network is good or not first to NASS before electronic voting is deployed.

    TNG reports the voting started with Senators Kalu, Abaribe and Omo-Agege.

     

     

    Details shortly…

  • Electoral Act: ReclaimNaija Grassroots Network Wants NASS to Reflect Citizens Will

    Electoral Act: ReclaimNaija Grassroots Network Wants NASS to Reflect Citizens Will

    …Calls for Electronic Transmission of Election Results
    …Demands Law that Safeguards Electoral Integrity, Free, Fair Elections
    …Canvasses an End to Electoral Fraud, Malpractices
    ReclaimNaija Grassroots Network, comprising grassroots community development and professional associations across the country, has called on members of the National Assembly to ensure that the outcome of the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill should reflect the views of the Nigerian people for free, fair and credible elections.
    In a plea addressed to members of the NASS Joint Committee on INEC and Electoral Matters, the network says, “the Nigerian citizens have, over the years, constantly expressed their desire for an Electoral Act that safeguards electoral integrity, free and fair elections in the country.”
    “We want an Electoral Act that puts an end to electoral fraud and malpractices. The Electoral Act must protect the mandate of Nigerian citizens and make sure that their votes count.
    “It should also be one that ensures a level-playing ground for citizens and not one that favours the socio-economically privileged sections of the society. All these were expressed in the recent public hearings and consultations carried out by NASS.
    “We are, therefore, gravely concerned to hear that there are attempts to introduce into the Electoral Bill 2021 clauses that undermine electoral integrity and the expressed will of Nigerian citizens, whose interests the legislators are supposed to be upholding in the National Assembly,” the group says.
    Continuing further, the network says, “We join other well-meaning Nigerians to demand the following:
    “Electronic Transmission of Results – Section 50 (2): We demand the electronic transmission of results from the polling units and reject any attempt to endorse manual transmission of results.
    “Drastic Reduction in Campaign Finance Limits – Section 88: We reject the attempt to astronomically increase the limit for campaign expenses. This is because the high cost of running for office is one of the reasons why disadvantaged groups in our country such as women, youths, persons with disability and low-income earners are not able to contest for public office.
    “It also contributes to electoral fraud and godfatherism so that sometimes the candidate that ends up emerging is the one who spent the most money and not necessarily the best candidate,” it reasons.
    According to the group, “this section should, therefore, be drastically reduced to retain the following campaign financing limits:
    a. N1 billion maximum for a Presidential Candidate;
    b. N200 million maximum for a Gubernatorial Candidate;
    c. N40 million maximum for a Senatorial Candidate;
    d. N30 million maximum for a House of Representatives Candidate; and
    e. N10 million maximum for a Candidate for the State House of Assembly
    Arguing on the need to empower INEC on review of Election Results (Section 65[2]), the network is of the view that, “This section should be reviewed to give INEC the power to review declaration of results that are inconsistent with the electoral laws and guidelines, or made under duress.”
    “Without such powers for INEC, the National Assembly will be encouraging the unscrupulous elements who threaten election officials to declare false results.
    “As grassroots citizens who are already socio-economically disadvantaged and marginalised from active political participation, we urge members of the National Assembly not to take any steps to produce an Electoral Act that would further worsen our situation.
    “Ideally, it is to members of the National Assembly that citizens, like us, should rely on to ensure that our aspirations and interests are protected. Please, do the needful,”the network noted.
    Organizations which endorsed this statement include Elder O.K. Miller, Commercial Motorcycle and Tricycle Operators Association, Delta State, Bilkisu Ado Zango, President, Initiative for Disability Inclusion and Diversity, Comrade Roselyn Osawe (JP), Association of Compassion Women, Edo State, Mrs. Ogundare Motunrayo, Nigerian Association of Saloon Hairdressers and Cosmetologists (NASHCO), Ejigbo, Lagos State, Mrs. Mary Matanmi, NASHCO, Isolo, Lagos State, Mr. Tunji Bakare, Professional Carpenters and Furniture Makers Association, Isolo,
    Lagos State and Engineer Joy Omiyale, Nigerian Automobile Technician Association, Oshodi, Lagos State.
    Others include Mr. Osasona Amos, Youth Leader, Ipere Community, Illejemeje, Ekiti State, Mr. Akole Olatunbosun, Youth Leader, Ikere Local Government, Ekiti State, Alhaji Murtala Adesiyan, Community Leader, Modakeke, Ife-North East Area Office, Osun State, Chief Areola Ayoposi, Community Leader, Odo-Ayedun, Ikole Local Government, Ekiti State, Chief Adeleke Jacob Ajayi, Community Leader, Ilasa, Ekiti State, Rev. Dr. Ayo Oladapo, CAN Chairman, Ondo State
    and Venerable (Dr.) Adamolekun Olusegun, CAN Secretary, Ondo West Local Government, Ondo State.
    Those who also signed the statement include:15. Barrister Deborah Ijadele Adetona, National President, Stand Up for Women Society, Mohammed Ishyaku, Integrity Consultative Forum, Gombe State, Mr. Olaniyan Isiaq, Youth Leader, Atakunmosa West Central, Osun State, Mr. Oyeyemi Wasiu, Community Leader, Egbedore South, Osun State, Mrs. Ladi Iliya, Mobilisation Towards Leadership for Women and Youth Development Initiative (MOLDEV), Plateau State, Mr. Wahidi Onilewura, Community Development Council (CDC), Amuwo Odofin, Lagos State and Ms Celine Osukwu, Community Life Project (CLP).
  • Any attempt to frustrate Electoral Act amendment, passage will sabotage Nigeria’s democracy – Hon Rima Shawulu

    Any attempt to frustrate Electoral Act amendment, passage will sabotage Nigeria’s democracy – Hon Rima Shawulu

    By Emman Ovuakporie

    As the National Assembly embarks on consideration of the Electoral Act amendment, a member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Rimamnde Shawulu Kwewum, has cautioned against any attempt to frustrate the passage of the Bill saying it will not augur well for the nation’s democracy.
    Kwewum said the present administration is trying to destroy the the electoral reforms implemented by former President Goodluck Jonathan, which brought it to power.

    The former Reps Committee Chairman on Army who featured on Monday as a guest on a national Television programme, spoke against the backdrop of a controversial clause said to have been inserted in the bill expected to be presented before plenary of the House on Tuesday.
    A clause against the electronic transmission of election results was said to have been inserted in the bill, raising concerns among lawmakers.
    Kwewum said many lawmakers were disappointed about the purported insertion of the clause.
    He said a copy of the committee’s report had not been made available to lawmakers despite the fact that the report is expected to be laid before the house at plenary on Tuesday.
    He said, usually reports of committees are handed to members a few days before time so that they can read them and understand the contents and the recommendations.
    “In this case, we have not received the report of the Committee on Electoral Matters. It has not been distributed to the members of the house, so the information we have, is the same information that the public has – namely, that what is published in the social media is what we can refer to and some of the issues raised in the social media are very worrying, especially , with regards to the question of how results would be transmitted to the collation centres”, Kwewum said.
    I’m not a member of the committee, but I have seen a lot of revulsion, people are disappointed, some members of the committee have expressed their disappointment on social media platforms. They said the decisions they took, did not include that one. It is likely going to be a rowdy session”, he said further.
    The lawmaker also expressed doubt whether the report will be presented to the house on Tuesday.
    He said, “I will also doubt it whether tomorrow, the report will be laid before the house, because up till this moment that I am speaking to you, the report has not been distributed. “Members are not aware of the report, so you cannot bring such an important matter on the day that you want the report to be considered – a report that is well over a 100 pages and expect that members of the house will sit down within minutes and consider.
    “We are expecting that if the report is laid, it will be distributed to members and they will go through it, consult with their constituents and major stakeholders and then we head for the consideration of the report.
    “But I don’t expect that members will take that lightly for these two reasons: first, you will recall that, the 8th Assembly, part of the reasons why the bill was not accented to was the fact that the president kept bringing up issues, spelling mistakes, problems with syntax, disagreements with interpretations and at the end of the day, the leadership of the National Assembly decided that, whatever the president want, we give it to him.
    “What he brought was handed back to him an he wrote back to say that the electoral bill could not be accented to, because it was too late, that it breached the ECOWAS protocol on electoral matters and so it was not signed.
    “We have been waiting for two years, we are in the third year and nothing has been done.
    “Let’s hope that this controversial clause that has been included is not a plan to ensure that controversies are brought up so that the bill will not be signed at all.
    “Democracy means inclusiveness, the inclusiveness of democracy ensures, you tap all talents, it leads to explosion of creativity in the land and we were hoping that so far everybody has agreed that the political leadership of this country has been responsible from 1960 to date for the problems we have in the Nigeria”.
    He said, “the reforms that were implemented by former President Goodluck Jonathan, that brought this government to power,” were being attacked by the government and “trying to ensure that they do not succeed.”
    He said one of the set backs to Nigeria’s democracy is the absence of rule of law and a procedure for doing things.
    According to him, “the absence of the rule of law, the absence of procedure and processes in doing things has led us to a situation where, elections today, you will probably know who is going to win but you will not know the process that will lead to the emergence of a winner.
    “That is contrary to democratic norms. In democracy, you are supposed to know the process of the electoral system…
    “It is very unfortunate that we are going back on these reforms that have brought us this far. I dare say that if this attack on democracy continue, we are going to see increased demands for secession, increased banditry, we are going to see increased disappointment of people in the political leadership and things that are happening. “You will see people try to resort to self help. I don’t think that this is the legacy that President Muhammadu Buhari would want to leave for the people of this country.
    “I think he needs to call his men together so that we can have an electoral system that will reflect the wishes of the people at the various levels.”
    Kwewum lamented that, what is happening in Nigeria is so disappointing and called on Nigerians to raise up and insist that the reforms which were started by President Jonathan are sustained.
    “Why will you tell people to register their SIM cards but will not want to use electronic system for elections? Why are we using double standards?” Kwewum asked
  • Why Buhari refused to sign electoral act before 2019 polls – Okowa

    Why Buhari refused to sign electoral act before 2019 polls – Okowa

    Delta Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has said politics was behind President Muhammadu Buhari’s refusal to sign the Electoral Amendment Act before the 2019 general election.

    He described politicians generally as “selfish” , adding that politicians deliberately avoided actions that was capable of undermining their personal interests, even if it was detrimental to common good.

    Okowa expressed optimism that the Electoral Act would be signed on time for the next election.

    He said, “The Electoral Act was not signed because of politics, politicians are selfish. If you watch what is going on in America, President Trump does not want the mailing votes to be counted if they arrive after 8pm on election day. But members of the Democratic Party think otherwise.

    “That is the way of politicians, always be conscious to avoid taking actions and decisions that would undo you. So it was not signed because of politics but I know that it will be signed this time.”

    The governor who spoke in Asaba while addressing youths in Delta North at a town hall meeting following the #EndSARS protests told the youths that politics was about learning along the line and picking the good things seen in good politicians and throwing away the bad ideas.

    “I agree that there is need to re-work our electoral processes but we need to re-engineer our minds because we have lost it and it’s time we began to talk to ourselves.

    “You must truly begin to organise yourselves in truth with a common goal and focus and whoever you select must stand for the common good of others.

    “We are building a new Nigeria with the youths and we must shun acts capable of reducing us when we leave office.

    “We will continue to allow youths, including females, to be part of the governance process because in learning you are building yourself for the future.

    “If you are a youth and you want to be active in politics you must respect your leaders and you must learn to pray a lot.

    “I am encouraged to see many more youths go into politics and I hope it is for the right reasons. I know we have some youths representing their people but are they showing examples to others?

    “The act of leading requires deep thought, sincerity and leadership quality because there is a difference between an orator and the person who is able to lead,” he said.

    The governor said the ongoing creation of new political wards by the Delta State Independent Electoral Commission (DSIEC) was to correct the imbalance in some local government areas, saying that the existing law stipulates that each local government should have a maximum of 20 wards.

    Commissioner for Youths Development, Ifeanyi Egwunyenga, had said the town hall meeting was designed to establish a sense of communication between the government and the youths in realisation of the critical role they played in nation-building.

    Participants at the meeting agreed that the #EndSARS protests were as a result of impunity of security operatives, particularly the extortion and brutality by the disbanded SARS and corruption at all tiers of government, resulting in hardship in the country.

    They called on the government to sponsor regular programmes on fundamental human rights and for the introduction of fundamental human rights in school curriculum.

    The youths also called for the revamping of all farm settlements in the state to engage more youths in agriculture.

  • Sign electoral act now to ensure free, fair credible elections- Onitiri

    Sign electoral act now to ensure free, fair credible elections- Onitiri

    Lagos-based socio-political activist and critic, Chief Adesunbo Onitiri has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately sign the Electoral Act into law to ensure free, fair and credible elections iin Nigeria.

     

     

    He made the charge in a Press statement issued in Lagos yesterday, while congratulating Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, for emerging winner of the just-concluded state governorship election.

     

     

    Chief Onitiri remarked: “Whilst congratulating Governor Obaseki on his well deserved victory at the just concluded Edo polls, we the democrats of Nigeria wish to thank all the Edo people for standing with democratic principles and re-engineering democracy in Nigeria.

     

     

    “We the Democrats wish to thank the independent National Electoral Commission(INEC), for conducting a free, fair and credible election in Edo state.

     

    “Besides, we appreciate President Buhari’s role for his non-interference with the electoral processes.

     

    “We also appreciate our security forces for their role in keeping the peace and thus uproviding a violent-free environment for the election”, the socio-political activist stated.

     

    Chief Onitiri white calling on President Buhari to sign the electoral act into law, emphasised that elections in Nigeria do not deserve the blood of any Nigerian.

     

    According to Onitiri, the Edo people have successfully put an end to godfatherism in our politic. Let the votes of the people count. We urge INEC to let the people’s votes also count in Ondo and other states of the federation.

     

     

    Ondo people should also replicate what happened in Edo on October 10, this year, so that we Nigerians can return to genuine democracy, added.

  • 2023: INEC proposes 34 amendments to Electoral Act

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is proposing 34 amendments to the Electoral Act, it was learnt yesterday.

    Its Director of Legal Services, Oluwatoyin Babalola, said there are certain shortcomings in the electoral legal framework that should be addressed through legislation.

    Also, Lagos State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) Sam Olumekun said the delimitation of constituencies was long overdue, in accordance with the 1999 Constitution.

    He said the last constituency delimitation was done “more than a long time ago,” adding that the population of the country and registered voters have increased exponentially, thereby underscoring an urgent review for proportional and fair representation.

    INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmud Yakubu said the agency remained committed to the review of the Electoral Act to enhance better conduct of elections.

    The INEC chiefs spoke yesterday in Lagos at the opening of a week-long retreat on the review of the electoral legal framework jointly organised by the commission, the European Centre for Electoral Support (ECES) and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES).

    The 37 RECs, national commissioners and directors of INEC were present at the retreat.

    On Thursday and Friday, members of the National Assembly Committees on INEC and Electoral Matters will join the retreat for what Yakubu called an “in-depth review of their proposals and the commission’s input”.

    Babalola said the lacuna in the provisions of the extant Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) had been identified and highlighted by INEC and stakeholders, adding that there have been calls in recent times for amendment to address the lacuna to foster better elections.

    She recalled that while INEC’s proposals were accepted, the amended Electoral Act was not signed into law by the Executive arm of government.

    Noting that the retreat was organised to enable the electoral officers contribute ideas and harmonise the inputs, Babalola said: “There are 34 proposed amendments elaborated in four columns.”

    The Lagos REC emphasised the importance of special courts for electoral offences, saying the special courts should have a defined time frame for prosecution and speedy administration of justice.

    On electoral litigation, Olumekun said: “The commission should critically examine the issue of conflict of interests among our external solicitors that represent the petitioners in other matters.

    “The commission should ensure that such solicitors do not represent any petitioner throughout the period of election petitions in the tribunals and courts of competent jurisdiction.

    “While we appreciate the effort of the commission in dealing with legal issues, the commission should continue to equip the Legal Department and prepare the staff to represent the commission in election matters.”

    Yakubu said the retreat was meant to finalise INEC’s comprehensive proposal to the National Assembly for amendment to the electoral legal framework.

    He added: “Our draft is ready but requires further internal review ahead of submission to the National Assembly.”

    The IN£EC chairman said the review of the electoral act will increase citizens’ confidence, enhance the transparency and credibility of the electoral process; entrench internal democracy within political parties; reduce violence, expand the scope of participation for women, youths and people living with disability; deepen the use of technology and foster independence of INEC.

    He added: “I am glad to know that members of the Senate Committee on INEC and House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters are joining us on Thursday and Friday for in-depth review of both their proposal and our input.

    “This is the first time that the National Assembly and INEC are coming together on electoral reform. We look forward to this opportunity to serve Nigerians better.”

  • 9th House committed to constitution, Electoral Act, others’ amendments – Gbajabiamila

    9th House committed to constitution, Electoral Act, others’ amendments – Gbajabiamila

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila has assured that the 9th House is committed to the amendment of the constitution and the Electoral Act.

    The Speaker also said the House would give attention to the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB), the Police Reform Bill, the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) amendment bill, among others.

    Unlike what happened during the last Assembly where both the constitutional and Electoral Act amendments bills were rejected by the President, Gbajabiamila said this time around, the National Assembly would ensure a thorough work, which will help ensure the President assents to the bills.

    The Speaker disclosed this when he hosted a team from the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), led by its Executive Director, Clement Nwankwo, during a courtesy call in his office on Thursday.

    “The roles of the CSOs, no doubt, we all know what your roles are anywhere in the world. You’ve enumerated quite a number of bills. As you know, the 9th House is a House of reforms. ‎We’re going to be doing all that.

    “You did talk about pending legislation such as electoral laws. We’re on the same page on this. We can’t move forward if we don’t understand the history and circumstances that led to the inability to do some things.

    “The issue of reordering of elections, for instance, we felt it was targeted at the sitting president. You can’t do laws to target somebody. There was also the issue of who has the right to reorder elections. There were arguments that the constitution says INEC should do that.

    “On the issue of police reform bill, we’ll look at it once again. On NABRO bill, we will also look at it. The PIGB, the CAMA Bill and the rest, we’ll work on them and get them to the president for his assent,” he said.

    Responding to the concerns raised by the PLAC Executive Director about regulations targeting non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the Speaker said whatever the House would do would be to strengthen their activities, noting that regulations are normal in every society.

    “I want us to be very objective when we talk about nation building. The NGOs are so important. If you mean well, you cannot strangulate NGOs. But the freedom to operate mustn’t be to the detriment of the state.

    “We had a meeting with the service chiefs where they made allegations about some NGOs. You and I know that there are some NGOs that are giving others a bad name. We want to strengthen NGOs, we’re not going to kill them. No. We want to make your work more efficient.

    “We should have a public hearing where all of us will sit down and discuss these issues. I agree that regulations hamper businesses, but NGOs are not businesses. There’s nothing wrong with regulations. Once we find a lacuna somewhere, we have to amend. Even the constitution is amended. You just talked about the Electoral Act. So, we have to come in when we see things go wrong.”

    Earlier, Nwankwo, who commended the leadership of the House for a smooth take-off with the way the standing committees were constituted, said some of the people-oriented motions considered so far by the House were laudable.

    He specifically noted the House resolution, which directed the Nigerian Army authorities to suspend the plan to begin identifying Nigerians using identity cards.

    Nwankwo also called on the House to give adequate attention to pending legislation such as the amendments to the Electoral Act, the Constitution, Police Reform bill, CAMA bill, the PIGB, the National Assembly Budget and Research Office (NABRO) bill, among others.

  • Assent to amended Electoral Act now, International observer group tells Buhari

    An International Election Observer group, Pan African Women (PAN) project, that monitored the general elections in Nigeria has appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to assent to the amended Electoral Act.

    The Publicity Secretary of PAN project 2019, Mphoentle Keitseng, who monitored Governorship and House of Assembly elections in Akwa Ibom made the appeal during an interactive session with journalists in Uyo on Wednesday.

    According to her, the electoral bill will help to facilitate and regulate proper conduct of subsequent elections in the country.

    She noted with dismay that the just concluded governorship and House of Assembly elections were marred with irregularities such as vote buying, ballot box snatching, intimidation, thuggery and disruption of voting process.

    Ms Keitseng harped on the need to review the electoral act in order to help strengthen the electoral process.

    She called on the federal government to create an election tribunal in order to prosecute offenders of the electoral processes.

    Ms Keitseng decried the heavy presence of military personnel in polling units which, she observed, was scaring voters.

    She advised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to improve on the arrival of materials and election kick off at the gubernatorial and state of assembly elections.

    “We commend the transparent and credibility exhibited by INEC in Akwa Ibom in conducting free, fair Presidential/National Assembly and Gubernatorial/State House of Assembly elections,” she said.

    Ms Keitseng also advised INEC to recruit ad-hoc staff who are above 30 years of age for sensitive positions as polling officers because many polling officials who were young lacked the maturity to take decisions on time, especially where violence erupted.

  • Electoral Act: Buhari’s refusal to sign the bill was no big deal – Lawan

    The Majority Leader of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, on Saturday said there was nothing to worry about in President Muhammadu Buhari’s decision to withhold assent on the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2018.

    Lawan told the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) in Abuja that the Electoral Act (2010) was good enough for the conduct of the 2019 general elections.

    He said the President’s decision should not be misinterpreted, adding that it was done in the interest of the country.

    “That the President declined assent to the bill was no big deal.

    “We can still use the Electoral Act, 2010, that was used in 2015 general elections.

    “This is to allay the fears of the citizens, who might think that the 2019 elections would not be well conducted without the amendment.

    “What we need to do is to look at the few lapses, especially in terms of administration which does not need any legal backing.

    “INEC conducted a very good election in 2015 with the existing act.

    “So, I believe that we can use that and nobody should start thinking that the elections will not be free and fair.

    “The 2015 elections were free, fair and transparent. All over the world, we were commended for conducting such a credible election.

    “It is not like the current act is so defective that we cannot use it, ” he said.

    The leader said the bill could be worked on, to be used in elections beyond 2019.

    He pointed out that: “If we cannot use the current amendments in 2019, who says we cannot use it in the 2023 elections and elections in between 2019 and 2023.

    “So, national interest is of utmost importance and not the noise being made by some people. So, there is no reason for worry or agitation.”

    Lawan said the president, as an elderstatesman, had the interst of the country at heart and his action should not be misconstrued to mean selfishness.

    According to him, the President cares for the masses, the progress, stability and development of the country and would not take any decision that would impact on the nation negatively.

    “The President believes in due process and as such he will do anything possible to ensure that our election processes are transparent.

    “For me, Mr President took his time with his advisers to study the bill before coming up with the decision.

    “We are all working in the interest of the nation and as such nobody should claim to be more patriotic than the President.

    “The president has his track records. This is a president that his whole life has been devoted to public good.

    “He has never shown selfishness or done anything to enhance his personal status.

    “All he does is for Nigeria to be better. So, I want to say that he cannot be forced to sign something as important as the electoral bill,” Lawan said.

  • NASS pegs presidential election expenses at N5bn

    The senate yesterday passed the rejigged Electoral Act Amendment Bill and restricted election expenses of any presidential candidate to a maximum of N5 billion.
    Similarly, they tinkered with the election expenses for governorship candidates, and pegged it at N1 billion, while senatorial candidates are to limit their expenses to N250 million.
    Adopting a report submitted by its committee on INEC, the senate approved the amendment of section 91 of the Electoral Act 2010 restricting the election expenses for House of Representatives candidate at N100 million; House of Assembly candidate, N30 million; chairmanship of area council, N30 million while the councilorship candidate must not spend over N5 million.
    According to the latest amendment, no individual or other entity shall donate N10 million to a candidate just as section 91(10) stipulates that “a candidate who knowingly acts in contravention of this section, commits an offence and is liable on conviction toafineofoneonepercent of the amount permitted
    as the limit of campaign expenditure under this Act or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or both.”
    President Muhammadu Buhari had previously rejected the Bill three times, citing “loopholes” in some of the sections of the amendments Bill.
    In the Bill passed yesterday, Clause 14 was introduced to amend Section 49 (4) of the Principal Act that deals with failure of a card reader.
    The report of the committee chaired by Suleiman Nazif said: “Where a Smart Card Reader deployed for accreditation of voters fails to function in any polling unit and a fresh Card Reader is not deployed three hours before the close of the election in that unit, then the election shall not hold but be rescheduled
    and conducted within 24 hours thereafter, provided that where the total possible votes from all the affected card readers in the unit or units does not affect the overall result in the constituency or election concerned, the Commission shall notwithstanding the fact that a fresh card reader is not deployed as stipulated, announce the final results and declare a winner.”
    Clause 24, was also introduced to amend Section 87 (13) of the Principal Act that deals with the issue of deadline for primary election.
    The Bill read in part: “The dates of the primaries shall not be earlier than 150 days and not later than 90 days before the date of the election to the elective offices.”
    The same section also stipulates a specific period within which political party primaries are required to be held.
    Clause 32, was introduced to amend Section 140 (4) of the Principal Act that deals with omission of name of a candidate or logo of a political party.
    It stated that “if at the point of display or distribution of ballot papers by the Commission, a candidate or his agent discovers that his name, the name or logo of his party is omitted, a candidate or his agent shall notify the Commission and the Commission shall postpone the election to rectify the omission; and appoint another date to conduct the election, not later than 90 days.
    “Where the election is postponed due to omission of a political party’s name or logo, the Commission’s officer responsible for such printing of party names or logo commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for two years or a fine of N2 million or both.”
    The main objectives of the amendment Bill, according to the Senate, includes “to provide for the use of Card Readers and any other similar technological devices in conducting elections; to provide a timeline for the submission of list of candidates as rightly captured in Section 31 (6) and 85 (l) of the Bill; to identify criteria for substitution of candidates, limit of campaign expenses; and to address noticed problems related to the omission of names of candidates or logo of political parties.”
    The committee chairman, however said all the issues raised by President Buhari have been addressed in the adopted report, adding, “Mr. President, distinguished colleagues, at this juncture, it is worthy to state very clearly that all the issues raised by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, while declining his assent to this Bill have been captured and addressed.”
    The senate, after passing the Bill into law, commanded the committee, adding that it is waiting for
    President Buhari to assent the Bill.
    Senator Emmanuel Bwacha expressed hope that the president will not return the Bill.
    “Everything that needs to be done has been done. It involved both PDP and APC, anything that will not make the Bill to be assented to will be sending a bad signal.”
    President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, shortly after the approval of the Amendment Bill, hailed the committee.
    “This will go a long way to improving our election and I am sure Mr President will assent this Bill,” he stated.