Poll reordering: Pro-Buhari senators collate signatures to thwart Senate veto
Leke Baiyewu, Abuja
Senators loyal to President Muhammadu
Buhari had started collating signatures of their members as part of
efforts to frustrate move by the Senate to veto the electoral bill, The Punch learnt on Wednesday.
It was also learnt that some All
Progressives Congress governors have intervened to ensure that the
Senate’s decision to override Buhari’s veto power in the passage of the
amendment to the Electoral Act 2010 was not successful.
Buhari had written to both chambers of
the National Assembly on his decision to withhold assent to the
controversial Electoral Act 2010 Amendment Bill which seeks to re-order
the sequence of polls in such a way that the presidential election would
come last during the general elections.
It was reliably gathered that members of
President Muhammadu Buhari’s cabinet and governors on the platform of
the ruling APC had been mobilising members of the National Assembly
loyal to Buhari to frustrate the move to override the President’s veto
on the amended Electoral Act.
An APC governor from the North-Central,
one from the South-West and another from the North-West were said to
have been part of a meeting with the lawmaker representing Nasarawa West
Senatorial District, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, in Abuja last Thursday.
Adamu is leading the opposition to the amendment, which is considered to be anti-Buhari in the Senate.
It was reliably learnt that a minister
from the South-South was also part of the meeting, where it was agreed
that the pro-Buhari members of the National Assembly would be mobilised
to frustrate the likely overriding of the President on the bill.
One of the senators opposed to the
amendment told our correspondent on Wednesday night that it was the
meeting that made Senator Obinna Ogba (PDP, Ebonyi-Central) to raise the
alarm that there was a move to sack the leadership of the Senate led by
Bukola Saraki.
The lawmaker however insisted that the meeting was to mobilise for Buhari’s defence and not to sack Saraki.
The source said, “Of course, there was a
meeting but it was not held with Adamu in Lafia on Tuesday, it was held
at his residence in Abuja last Thursday. But they started gathering
signatures on Tuesday. The conclusion at the meeting was that senators
who were opposed to the amendment should lobby others to reject the move
to override Buhari’s veto on the bill.
“So far so good, we should have got the
needed number that we need, which is just over 40. They need 73 or
two-third of the 109 to override the veto but we need less than 50 to
frustrate that.
“The Peoples Democratic Party caucus
just met tonight and part of their agenda is how to achieve the
imposition of the bill on the President.”
He said although the larger percentage
of the PDP caucus is for the amendment, a particular member of the
caucus from the South-East chose to sign the pro-Buhari senators’ list.
“He has already signed with us and there is a few others too,” he added.
Adamu, however, did not confirm or deny the said meeting.
He was contacted for the confirmation on
Wednesday night but he did not pick several calls made to his telephone
line and did not reply a text message sent to him.
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