Headline

Reps to Override Buhari on Peace Corps Bill, Nine Others

Published

6 years ago

March 15, 2018

Eric

The House of Representatives has said it will override President Muhammadu Buhari’s veto on the Peace Corps Bill he had earlier rejected.

The implication of this is that the lawmakers will pass the bill into law without Buhari’s assent if the Upper Chamber of the National Assembly tread the same path with the House.

The Chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Abdulrazak Namdas, who said this on Wednesday, added that the House would override Buhari on nine other bills.

He said the National Assembly had begun the process of overriding Buhari’s veto on the 10 bills.

According to Namdas, apart from the Peace Corps Bill, a Bill for an Act to Establish the Chartered Institute of Treasury Management; a Bill for an Act to Establish the Nigerian Council for Social Work; and a Bill for an Act to Amend the Currency Conversation of Prison Orders are some of the bills.

Others are “A Bill for an Act to Establish Police Procurement Fund, a Bill for an Act to Amend the Environmental Health Officers Registration, a Bill for an Act to Establish the Chartered Institute of Loan and Risk Management of Nigeria and a Bill for an Act to Establish the Chartered Institute of Public Management of Nigeria.”

This will, however, require securing two-thirds majority vote of both chambers to pass the bills.

This means that at least 72 senators and 240 Reps must vote to override the President.

The procedure for overriding the President’s veto on a bill is spelt out in Section 58 of the constitution, particularly 58 (5).

Section 58 (5) reads, “Where a bill is presented to the President for assent, he shall within thirty days thereof signify that he assents or that he withholds assent.

“(5) Where the President withholds his assent and the bill is again passed by each House by two-thirds majority, the bill shall become law and the assent of the President shall not be required.”

The House, Namdas added, insisted that it would override the President’s veto in the controversial electoral bill to ensure that the 2019 presidential poll would be conducted last in the sequence by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

It gave clear signals to override the President’s veto by saying that the electoral bill would be sent to Buhari again for his signature.

However, this will come after two of the three reasons Buhari gave for withholding his assent would have been deleted from the bill and passed afresh.

Namdas, who spoke on the latest decision of the legislature, explained that the lawmakers had accepted two of the reasons advanced by Buhari for rejecting the bill.

He said those accepted were the second and third reasons given by the President.

Namdas, a member of the All Progressives Congress from Adamawa State, said, “We agreed with the first one that the amendment of Section 138 of the Principal Act (Electoral Act) to delay crucial grounds upon which an election may be challenged by a candidate, unduly limits the right of candidates in election to a free and fair electoral review process. This, we have agreed with the President.

“We have also agreed with the reason advanced that the amendment of Section 152 of the Principal Act raises constitutional issues over the competence of the National Assembly to legislate over local government elections.

“This too, we have agreed with the President. So, it is true that we don’t have powers on the two.”

But, on the first reason, which was on the reordering of the elections, Namdas said the legislature insisted that it retained the power under the 1999 Constitution to decide the order of elections and not INEC.

He noted that Section 4 of the constitution empowered the National Assembly to legislate over elections, particularly item 22 of the provision.

Namdas added, “It means that we have the power to work on the order of elections as it is stated. INEC has the power to fix electoral dates in accordance with the Electoral Act. The entire Electoral Act talks about organising elections. If we do not have powers on how to organise elections, that means we do not even have the power to even pass the Electoral Act itself. That means it’s an illegal thing (Act) because it was passed by the National Assembly.”

Namdas disclosed that the National Assembly stood by the new bill that the presidential poll would be held last, but excluding the two reasons it was in agreement with Buhari.

He stated that the National Assembly would expunge the two portions from the bill, pass it again and send it to Buhari for his assent on the reordered elections sequence.

“In view of this, we will re-gazette the Electoral Act (amendment bill) and expunge the areas that we are in agreement with the President. In line with the constitution, we will bring it back for debate and follow the procedure of first and second reading, pass it and re-transmit it to the President for his assent.”

The implication is that the bill will begin a fresh journey of first, second and third reading before it is sent to Buhari again for his assent.

Namdas added that should he withhold his assent again to the bill, the process of overriding his veto would commence in earnest.

The Punch

Headline

Breaking: Wike Plans to Attend Thursday’s PDP NEC Meeting

Published

19 hours ago

April 17, 2024

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

The immediate past Governor of Rivers State, and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, may have concluded plans to attend the much advertised National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), billed to hold on Thursday, in Abuja.

Impeccable source, who is in the know, told The Boss that the minister, whose membership of the PDP is yet to be revoked even as he frolicks with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), and serving in the President Bola Tinubu government as a minister.

The Source told The Boss that Wike’s impending presence at the NECeeting on Thursday is not unconnected with plans, already hatched with some governors, to weaken the opposition PDP.

“Yes, we have on good authority that FCT minister, Wike is planning to attend the NEC meeting tomorrow all in a bid to weaken the fabrics of the PDP, and pave the way for the continuation of the Tinubu administration come 2027, and by extension, relapse Nigeria to a full blown one party state.

“From every indication, Wike and his co-travellers, are bent on unleashing the same crisis ravaging the third force, Labour Party, and Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso’s Nigerian National People’s Party (NNPP) on the PDP for the APC to remain the only political party in the country, and ensure that Tinubu has no challenger, come 2027,” the Source said.

It would be recalled that Wike has boasted over and again that there’s no opposition against Tinubu’s re-emergence in 2027, and that they have made sure of that. He has been compensated with the Ministerial job after he withdrew support for his party, and supported the APC and Tinubu to emerge as national government.

The Source further revealed that in the attempt to actualize the intended one party state, a lot of funding is ongoing to ensure that concerned stakeholders are ‘settled’ handsomely.

Wike, prior, during and after the 2023 general elections, has been floating in between the two major political parties; the APC and the PDP. While he claim to still be a member of the PDP, he is functioning as a minister in an APC government, mocking the inability of his party to discipline him.

Political stakeholders have concluded that the outcome of Thursday’s PDP NEC meeting will determine the path Nigeria’s political trajectory will take, and that it may portend the end of multi-party system and political democracy if Wike succeeds in his plan.

Headline

Bribery, Corruption: APC Suspends National Chairman, Ganduje

Published

3 days ago

April 15, 2024

Eric

The All Progressives Congress ward in Ganduje, Dawakin Tofa Local Government Area, has suspended the party’s National Chairman, Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje.

The party ward legal adviser, Halliru Gwanzo, announced the suspension while addressing newsmen in Kano State on Monday.

Gwanzo cited allegations of bribery against Ganduje levelled by the Kano State Government as the reason for the suspension.

“We decided to suspend Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje from the party due to the seriousness of the allegations against him,” Gwanzo said.

Meanwhile, efforts to contact the Chief Press Secretary to the APC National Chairman, Mr Edwin Olufo, failed as his mobile phone was unreachable.

Headline

Akpabio Commits to Collaboration with Tinubu, Governor Umo Eno

Published

6 days ago

April 12, 2024

Admin

The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has stated his commitment to working closely with Nigeria’s President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and Governor Umo Eno to ensure the delivery of democratic benefits to the people of Akwa Ibom State.

Akpabio stated this in his country home, Ukana, Essien Udim Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom, while briefing his constituents on the journey so far as their representative in the red chamber.

He assured the people of Akwa Ibom North West Senatorial District of his commitment to their welfare in appreciation of their total support for him, President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in last year’s election.

The Highpoint of the constituency briefing was the distribution of over 10,000 bags of rice and other essentials for his constituents from the wards, to the local governments.

A statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Jackson Udom, quoted Akpabio as saying, “I am here once again, to thank you for standing by me, our President and the party, before, during and even after last year’s elections. I have come to say thank you and also bring Renewed Hope to you all.

“As the President is doing his own, the Senate President is also doing his bit and being complemented by the state governor, Akwa Ibom would be the better for it. We have finished elections and politics, we are now into governance. The governor of the state must touch you, because he is the governor of all the people in the state irrespective of political affiliation.

” As I am touching you now from the political angle, I will also touch the state without any political party affiliation. Most of the projects we are putting in place would be used by people resident in the state. Relax, things are getting better.”

The former Governor of the state, assured his constituents that his current position as the Senate President would be used for the development of the state in collaboration with the President and the Akwa Ibom State Governor.

Hear him: This Senate President is not the one that would be fighting the state government. I will collaborate with , I will collaborate with , to make the state better for us all. We cannot be out of government for a long time. You have to go to a government that carries you along”

Akpabio promised to work for his constituents and Nigeria with all his strength, noting that, “as the President of the Senate, I am for the Southern region and the entire country. I may not come here regularly to tell you what I have been doing for you, but you will be feeling the impact on way or the other. Our unemployed youths would be gainfully employed. I will construct a mini stadium in all the local governments in the district, for our youths to develop their sporting potentials. ”