…Suspends further consideration of Electoral Bill till today
…House summon INEC Chairman, NCC
There was a stalemate yesterday during the House of Representatives debate on the Electoral Act amendment Bill.
The House has however summoned the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman,
Professor Mahmood Yakubu, and his counterpart at the Nigeria Communications Commission, (NCC), Prof Umar Danbatta.
The members at the consideration of the report had expressed their dissatisfaction with the decisions of the Chairman of the ‘Committee of Whole’, Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Wase, on the controversial ruling on the mode of voting.
Wase had consistently ruled against the wish and the voice-vote of majority of members which approved electronics transmission of results on one hand, and the combination of both electronics and manual as introduced by Abiodun Faleke and seconded.
However, when the question was put the voice vote approved of the combination but the presiding officer of the Committee of the whole, the Deputy Speaker, Hon Wase, again ruled in contradiction of a clear majority in support of both electronic and manual transmission of the result.
The Deputy Speaker announced that the House reverts to Plenary and report progress, while suspending further consideration of the Bill. But the members still disagreed with the decision of the presiding officer at the committee of the whole, shouting: “No, No, No”, to his controversial ruling on the mode of voting.
The session ended in raucous sitting with members fighting, engaging in brawls, with the Speaker in plenary, bringing the session to a stop with an announcement adjourning the house until today, to have INEC chairman and NCC brief the lawmakers more on Section 52.
