Buhari Lists Two Things Lawmakers Must Add Before He Signs Electoral Bill

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Buhari Lists Two Things Lawmakers Must Add Before He Signs Electoral Bill

President Muhammadu Buhari has asked the National Assembly to add Indirect Primaries and Consensus candidate to the Electoral Act Amendment Bill before he signs it into law.

Speaking in an interview with Channels Television aired on Wednesday, Buhari said he rejected the bill because direct primary mode was the only option to conduct primaries by political parties.

“All I said (is that) there should be options,” he said. “We must not insist that it has to be direct; it should be consensus and indirect.”

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Asked if he would sign if the lawmakers effect the change in that direction, he affirmed, “Yes, I will! I will sign.

“There should be options, you can’t dictate to people and say you are doing democracy. Give them other options so they can make a choice.”

Naija News recalls that in declining assent to the bill, President Buhari stated that assenting to the bill may open up the electoral system to a series of court issues from party members and stakeholders.

According to Buhari, the adoption of direct primaries violates the spirit of democracy and would fuel corruption as well as encourage over monitorization.

Buhari, therefore, said he declined assent to the bill in line with section 58 (1) of the 1999 constitution, arguing that the mandatory use of direct primaries for the selection of candidates by all political parties in the country as proposed in the bill would place a huge financial burden on the country’s slim resources.