Reps to pass electoral bill today, receive report

…CSOs to monitor proceedings

The much-awaited report of the Electoral Amendment Bill was on Wednesday presented on the floor of the House of Representatives.

And barring any changes, the report will be debated and passed on Thursday.

Chairman of the House Committee on Electoral Matters, Hon. Aisha Dukku (APC, Gombe) laid the report at the plenary presided over by the Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila.

Moving a motion to lay the report she said: “That the House do receive the Report of the Committee on Electoral Matters on a Bill for an Act to Repeal the Electoral Act No. 6, 2010 and enact the Electoral Act 2021, to Regulate the Conduct of Federal, State and Area Councils in the Federal Capital Territory Elections; and for Related Matters.”

The Electoral Amendment Bill has generated a lot of controversy in the past few weeks especially over allegations of excising part on the electronic transmission of reports

However, Speaker Gbajabiamila had denied that nobody had tampered with the report and also promised that the House would only receive and debate the authentic report from the committee.

He also promised that the parliament will pass it before the House proceeds on its annual recess on Thursday.

Meanwhile, New Telegraph learnt that some civil society groups are planning to storm the National Assembly on Thursday to monitor the proceedings of the House.

A member of one of the Abuja-based non-governmental organisations, who disclosed this to our correspondent on Wednesday, said they will not allow the legislators to pass a “half-baked’ bill.

“We are prepared for them and our members from the CSOs will be with them in the chambers to monitor the proceedings.

“We have been reliably informed that they have removed the electronic transmission of results but since they are denying it, we will wait and see what they will come out with tomorrow (Thursday),” he stated.