Electoral Act Amendment Bill and Buhari’s insensitivity

Perhaps, the recently passed Electoral Act Amendment Bill by the National Assembly which President Muhammadu Buhari   refused to sign for it to become law is one of the contentious legal documents to be scripted by the legislature next to the Petroleum Industry Act. It is not for nothing that the Electoral Act Amendment Bill have continued to generate high wire attention considering its relevance towards securing better guiding steps towards a free and fair election in Nigeria, a tradition which had eluded the country right from the first republic when the outcomes of elections were as heinous as the processes which produced them.

We are therefore not surprised that the president was  reluctant to sign the bill into law like he did on three previous  occasions but rather worried that the country is yet again inching towards losing another golden opportunity at institutionalizing the pegs for credible elections which is the primary basis for democracy,  good governance and thus establishment of a society where every citizen will not only aspire to become what he wants to be but more importantly, not to  accomplish such feat at the detriment of other persons or interest groups.

 It was unfortunate that state actors refused to rise to the occasion of advising President Buhari on the need to respect the expressed wishes and body language of majority of Nigerians by signing the Electoral Act Amendment Bill knowing that no piece of legal document anywhere in the world can be said to be perfect but rather the basis for further improvement consequent upon the growing sophistication and dynamics of the society.

The recent memo by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN) to the President highlighting the problems with the inclusion of mandatory direct primaries in the Electoral Act amendment bill  is one of the obvious indications that we do not yet have a perfect document ,but to suggest that there are no cheering moments in the Bill as passed by lawmakers is to live in denial.

Although the AGF, who was particular that making direct primaries mandatory for all political parties could cause confusion did not quote any section of the law that makes it illegal which is unlike his previous letters  to the President, we are tempted to agree with the position of the AGF which appears to be in tandem with the submission of the electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) when it observed that the inclusion of direct primaries in the election of party candidates in our federal law will be perceived as another national election even as INEC had already distanced itself from the funding of such party activities describing it as ‘internal affairs of the parties’. We are worried that forcing all parties to adopt the direct mode of primary would mean that all existing parties would have to change their constitutions. We are mindful that existing political parties will not find it easy complying with the proposed practice of direct primaries because they have registered their parties, they have filed their constitutions long time ago on the basis of what is contained there and most of it is a mixture of direct and indirect primaries. While we concede to the superior argument that mandatory direct primaries would create a level playing field for all including women and youths, we beg to allow the various parties decide on this in accordance with the popular Nigerian parlance of ‘internal affairs’.

 Our initial fears were that Mr. President was provided with an undue platform to withhold his assent to the Electoral Act Amendment Bill on the basis of such flimsy reason as the internal affairs of party primary elections while the bigger picture which is the deployment of electronic channels for the voting and transmission of election results as presented by both the Senate and House of Representatives is allowed to suffer yet another deferment.

 We recall that Buhari, who received the bill on November 19, had until December 19 to sign it or communicate to the National Assembly his feelings and comments about the bill. But if after 30 days, the President refuses to sign the bill and the National Assembly is not in support of the President’s amendments, the lawmakers can recall the bill and pass it in the form it was sent to the President by two-thirds majority votes in both chambers and the bill automatically becomes a law even without the signature of the President. This is the kind of ‘confrontation’ which the presidency and the legislature which is the representative of the masses must avoid.

INEC has confirmed its capacity to deploy electronic facilities in both the voting and transmission of election results and the legislature has given it the latitude to make the choice just as the outcomes of some off season elections as was done in Edo and Anambra governorship elections confirmed the efficacy of electronic means in election processes. What is left is for all well meaning Nigerians including the office of the AGF to encourage President Buhari to, for once keep to his election campaign promises part of which is to institutionalize credible election process for Nigeria and Nigerians.

It is not a good commentary to state that Buhari has on four occasions turned down amendments to the Electoral law thus portraying him in a negative light as been among those that do not want democracy to flourish in the country. In March 2018, he rejected the bill on the grounds that the proposed law would usurp the constitutional powers of INEC to decide on election matters. In September the same year, Buhari also turned down the bill citing some clauses that needed revision and mechanical accuracies.

In December 2018, Buhari refused to assent to the Electoral Bill saying it stands a chance of creating “uncertainty and confusion” in the 2019 general elections where he was seeking a second term in office.

We therefore urge President Buhari to utilize the opportunity of the moment to be on the side of the same ordinary Nigerians whom he promised to deliver from the stronghold of the few political gladiators by cooperating with the legislature in ensuring that the Electoral Act Amendment Bill  which he has rejected on four occasions is quickly returned to his table for assent against the backdrop of many unfulfilled campaign promises most of which will be impossible to fulfil between now and May 2023 when history will draw down the curtain on his leadership of the country at all levels and at any other time.