Politics
Odds against pro-Buhari senators as signatures pile up to override President
The principal officers of the National Assembly, led are meeting Monday to buttpn up strategies in the move to over-ride President Muhammadu Buhari’s veto on the Electoral Act Amendment Bill.
The Senate has already garmered 73 signatures needed to form a quorom that willoverride Buhari’s withholding of assent communicated to both chambers in separate letter in March 13.
The House of Reps will begin its signature collation this week.
Vanguard learned, is to compile its signatures this week.
Two-thirds of each chamber is needed to set Buhari’s veto aside–according to the constitution.
Seventy-two senators will form a quorom in the upper chamber while 240 reps form the majority in the lower chamber.
After that, the bill will now go through the first, second, and third readings again. No presidential assent required this time pass it to law after that.
The legislative war between the executive and the legislature began when the NASS amended the electoral such that the presidential election now comes last–against the order in the Electoral Act.
Buhari has insisted the lawmakers, by the amendement, usurped INEC’s powers to conduct elections.
Senators sympathetic to Buhari and his likely ambition for 2019–at least 20 of them– believe the alteration of the electoral act was weighted against the president.
The House has since been divided in two: those loyal to Senate President Bukola Saraki, and those loyal to Buhari.
Last week, there were subterranean moves by the anti-Saraki caucus, and some APC governors loyal to Buhari, to win over as many of the APC senators to prevent the House from forming a quorom.
But activities on the weekend revealed the die might have been cast.
Saraki and Speaker Yakubu Dogara p the weekend stated in a press release their joint resolve to override the president.
The pro-Buhari camp can only redeem their chances of uppsetting the applecart if they can swing the decision of the lower chamber.
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