2019: INEC speaks on Buhari assenting Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2018

Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, INEC Chairman

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, yesterday said it had no reason to believe President Muhammadu Buhari would not sign the Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2018.

This was stated by INEC’s Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, when he featured on Channel TV’s, Politics Today, in Abuja.

Recall that the Electoral Act Amendment Bill had been rejected thrice in the recent past by President Buhari over observed lacunas in certain sections of the Bill as forwarded for executive assent.

Speaking on the Bill, which is currently before the executive for the fourth time, Osaze-Uzzi said INEC while waiting for President Buhari to append his signature, is carrying on preparation for the 2019 general elections with the extant laws used in conducting the 2015 polls.

“As for the Electoral Act amendment, the legal regime ought to have been settled long before now. But, be that as it may, the Bill is before the President now.

“We don’t have any reason to believe he will not give his assent to that Bill. So, we will wait.

“People seem to forget there is an (existing) extant law. That law was used to conduct the 2015 general elections which may have been imperfect but I think from both domestic and international observers, it reflected the will of the people.

“Worse case scenario, we would fall back to that law. In fact, it is what is guiding our preparations,” he said.

The Commission’s spokesman further allayed fears that the 2019 polls may marred by violence.

He said: “From statistics, there isn’t a recorded case of death arising form the conduct of the 2015 election itself. No politically charged or political related violence.

“I believe that record would be maintained as much as it is possible nobody will be killed or harmed.”