Supreme Court, INEC behind Electoral Act amendment Omo-Agege insists

Stakeholders urge speedy passage to check infractions
Deputy Senate President Ovie Omo-Agege has said the ongoing efforts of the ninth Assembly to amend the Electoral Act 2010 were prompted by the Supreme Court and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)

He said the observations by the apex court and the need to ensure full compliance with the electoral umpire’s rules motivated the exercise.

Omo-Agege, who doubles as chairman of the constitution review committee, spoke yesterday at a retreat put together by INEC and the National Assembly on the “Reform of the Electoral Legal Framework.”

The representative of Delta Central gave an overview of the bill to amend the Electoral Act which he presented before the Senate.

His paper, which was a central issue during the function, was on “Overview of the Bill for an Act to Amend the Electoral Act (No. 6) 2010 and other Related Matters, 2019.”

“The bill is in part, a response to several decisions by the Supreme Court wherein the apex court directly or indirectly invited the National Assembly to make necessary amendments to the Electoral Act.

“As a lawyer and senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I believe that given the finality and immutability of its decisions, it is only responsible for the National Assembly to act whenever there are apparent lacunae in our laws,” he stated.

Also yesterday, stakeholders urged an expeditious exercise and quick passage of the piece of law to address the noticeable lapses in the management of elections in the country.

Among other issues, INEC frowned on the right under the law to file pre-election cases in different high courts.

Its chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, spoke at a retreat to tinker with extant electoral laws organised by the commission, European Centre for Electoral Support (ECES) and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) in Lagos.