Buhari to sign Electoral Act Amendment Bill into law on Friday – Presidency sources

By Editor

President Muhammadu Buhari is expected to sign into law the long-awaited Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2021, on Friday.

Authoritative Presidency sources confirmed that the President would be performing his duty of assenting to the bill around 12pm.

There have been public anxiety mounting in the last few weeks, over President Buhari’s delay in assenting to the re-amended bill, as some members of the public as well as some critical stakeholders have already concluded that he is withholding assent again.

It would be recalled that on Tuesday, Civil Society Organisations, CSOs gathered at Eagle Square, Abuja to protest over the alleged delay in the signing into law the piece of legislation expected to strengthen the electoral process.

It will also be recalled that the National Assembly transmitted the Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2021 to President Buhari on January 31, a second time, having reportedly revised the bill, which he withheld his assent to for some noted reasons.

The President contended that the National Assembly should provide options for political parties in choosing their candidates to stand for elections and not direct primaries as the only option.

He recommended that indirect primaries and even consensus should included as options available to political parties in choosing their candidates.

However, the President has yet to assent to the re-amended bill more than 20 days after it was transmitted to him, though he constitutionally has a 30-day window within which he is mandated to either assent or state reasons for not doing so.

 

Sources close to the office of the President, however, revealed that arrangements had been finalized for the President to sign the amendment bill into law on Friday, finally putting all anxieties to rest.

The source, who spoke on conditions of anonymity, said “all these anxieties will disappear by Friday afternoon.

”He will be signing the bill around noon of that day.

“I believe he has taken his time so that the Act can be as unassailable as much as possible.”

President Buhari had while withholding his assent to the bill in November 2021, cited the cost of conducting direct primary elections, security challenges, and possible manipulation of electoral processes by political players as part of the reasons for his decision.