House drops contentious Election Sequence Bill

The House of Representatives has dropped the Electoral Amendment Bill causing trouble in the Senate, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) has reported.

The House and the Senate amended the bill, changing the election sequence announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The bill sought to amend electoral act to change the sequence of the election in a way that the presidential election comes last, after the state assemblies/National Assembly and governorship elections.

Immediately the bill was passed by the Senate, a group of senators kicked against the amendment of the election sequence.

The Northern senators’ caucus dropped their leader, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, for leading the campaign against the amendment.

In spite of his apology, pro-Buhari Senator Ovie Omo-Agege was last week suspended for 60 legislative days for taking the Senate to court over the bill.

Some hours after Omo-Agege led some thugs to seize the mace of the Senate in protest against his suspension, the lower legislative chamber dropped the bill during plenary on Wednesday.

The member of the House who initially sponsored the bill, Hon. Edward Pwajok, from Plateau, dropped it on Wednesday.

President Muhammadu Buhari had declined assent to the bill and returned it to the lawmakers. Credit: NAN