The House of Representatives is to override President Muhammadu Buhari’s veto power on ten bills including the Nigerian Peace Corp bill.
This was made known at the House plenary session on Wednesday after Buhari declined to assent to the amendment of the 2010 Electoral Act forwarded to him by the National Assembly (NASS).
A second look at why Buhari declined to assent to the Electoral Act amendment indicates the President cited Section 25, Section 138 and Section 152 Subsection 325 of the Principal Act to give reasons why he withheld assent.
“The amendment to the sequence of elections in Section 25 of the principal act, may infringe upon the constitutionally guaranteed discretion of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to organize, undertake and supervise elections provided in Section 15(A) of the third statue to the Constitution.
“The amendment to Section 138 of the principal act to delete two crucial grounds upon which an election may be challenged by candidates, unduly limits the rights of candidates in elections to a free and fair electoral review process.
“The amendment to Section 152 Subsection 325 of the Principal Act may raise Constitutional issues over the competence of the National Assembly to legislate over local government elections,” he stated.
However, it is yet to be known if the House will override Buhari’s veto power on the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2018 as well.
Meanwhile, a professor of law at the Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Uli in Enugu state has said that Buhari’s decision to withhold assent to the Electoral Act as amended by the National Assembly is in order.
Professor Osita Ogbu said that the prevailing circumstance needed not be misconstrued as a constitutional crisis, and that there was no cause for alarm as the president acted within the law.
He said that if the NASS felt undone by the action of the president, they would have to muster third-majority of their members to veto such presidential decision.
“The president has the constitutional right to veto the document but if the NASS can muster two- third majority against that decision, it can be overridden. This is a democratic process and part of checks and balances in the art of governance,” Ogbu said.
