Electoral Bill: CSOs task NASS to consider overriding public interest during harmonisation

The coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) operating in Nigeria on Monday tasked the leadership of Senate and House of Representatives to put the overriding public interest during the harmonization of clauses in the Electoral Bill, 2021 on the electronic transmission of election results, on resumption for the Third legislative year on Tuesday.

The coalition in a statement signed by the Executive Director of Adopt A Goal for Development Initiative, Mr Ariyo-Dare Atoye, underscored the need for President Muhammadu Buhari to signed the bill into law before the Anambra governorship election slated for November 6, 2021.

Other members of the coalition are: Center for Liberty, Raising New Voices Initiative, Project Vote Initiative, The Nigerian Alliance, The Art and Civics Table and Dinidari Foundation.

“As the National Assembly resumes from its long annual recess this week, we wish to welcome our lawmakers back to legislative business and quickly remind them that Nigerians are eager to have the Electoral Bill harmonized, transmitted and signed by the President before the Anambra governorship election.

“We are therefore urging the President of the Senate, Dr Ahmad Lawan and Speaker of the House of Representatives to immediately constitute the conference committee to harmonise the two versions of the electoral bill passed by the lawmakers.

“While we recalled that different versions of the Electoral Bill 2021 were passed by both Houses of the National Assembly at the end of July 2021, at this critical juncture, we wish to urge the two houses to act good faith and strongly consider the overriding public interest, in sorting out the differences in the versions of the bill.

“Nigerians are optimistic that legal wisdom will prevail and the Senate will step down its own version of Clause 52(3) of the bill that requires the electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to seek the approval of both the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the National Assembly before deciding on the use of technology in the transmission of election results.

“The Nigerian people demand that the House of Representatives’ version of clause 52(3) that gave INEC the power to make this decision regarding the electronic transmission of results should prevail at the conference and be retained in the harmonised document.

“In this bill that seeks to repeal and re-enact the 2010 Electoral Act, we appeal to the leadership of the National Assembly not to do anything that will allow the constitutional breach of the powers of INEC to be independent,” Comrade Atoye urged.

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