By BASHIR ADEFAKA
The President’s decision to withhold assent from the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2021 has come under scrutiny from media and political circles. This is quite correct because it is a decision that will impact all Nigerians. The President’s Office has decided therefore to issue an official statement to make its position clear.
These were words of the Nigeria’s Presidency in a statement issued in Abuja by Malam Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, dated (Tuesday) 28 December, 2021 and copy of which was sent to The DEFENDER.
Shehu, in giving further insight into the President’s decision to withhold assent from the Bill, cleared the doubts of critics across quarters saying the President’s decision was for the protection of Nigeria’s democracy and he will do whatever he can to keep it up.
President Buhari had last Tuesday declined assent to the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2021 over the direct primaries clause imposed on the nation’s politics, which he believes is too expensive, while the legislature expunged the indirect primaries clause from the document.
In a letter sent to the National Assembly, the President cited several issues with the clause, including legal, economic and security challenges.
He added that it would also impact negatively on the rights of citizens to participate in the government as constitutionally ensured.
His Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, had reiterated the concerns of the President, stating that he had sought the opinions of several stakeholders before arriving at the decision.
According to the Presidency in the latest statement by Garba Shehu, Nigeria’s strength as a nation and its status as one of the wealthiest economies in Africa with one of its highest standards of living owes above all to its proud democratic processes, which are enshrined in the Electoral Act of 2010.
“It is this act which the new bill seeks to amend. These amendments have been presented as a means to enhance and build upon our democratic processes. After careful review, the President’s Office has found that the opposite is true.
“Rather, the proposed amendments entail significant legal, financial, economic and security consequences for all Nigerians, principal among which would be a severe spike in the cost of holding primary elections by parties – integral to democracies the world over.
“And who would shoulder these costs? The Nigerian taxpayer of course. And who would benefit? Only the richest of political parties. At a time when the nation is seeking to extricate itself from the economic mire of the worst global health crisis in living memory, whatever other merits the new bill may have, now is not the time for such frivolous spending of public money.
“Inevitably, the usual voices are making themselves heard, with cynical claims of election rigging and so on. This is nothing new. We heard their self-serving cries of fraud in 2015, when we saw the first peaceful transfer of power in independent Nigeria’s history. Then again in 2019, when President Buhari was re-elected with a lead of over three million. We will hear them again in 2023.
“Until then, the President will do whatever he can to protect this county’s democracy, and that includes withholding assent from this Bill. It is worth noting that, as one of Nigeria’s largest political parties, the ruling APC is one of those that stand to benefit from a bill that favours wealthier parties. But it is not the job of this government to protect the APC. It is the job of this government to protect Nigeria, her people and her democracy.
“To those that would rather that limited public funds be spent on politicking during this time of global crisis, we say: cease these cynical games. Tell the Nigerian people openly what you want. Put your – or rather their – money where your mouth is,” Presidency said in the Garba Shehu’s statement.
