The House of Representatives on Tuesday, passed a motion for the rescission of a Bill seeking to establish an Electoral Offences Commission.The motion was presented by Rep. Abubakar Fulata, Chairman, Rules and Business, at plenary in Abuja.
The motion was entitled: “Rescission on Referral of a Bill for an Act to Establish Electoral Offences Commission: and for Related Matters.”According to Fulata, on Wednesday July 14 2021, a bill for an Act to Establish electoral offences commission and for Related Matters was referred to the Committee of the Whole.“The bills on the same subject matter are pending before the house, hence the need to rescind the resolution on the bill to further consolidate with other bills,” he said.Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker of the House of Reps, while ruling on the matter, referred the motion to the House Committee on Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
He also adopted the decision on the referral and further consolidation of the bills.It would be recalled that there was a stalemate on the floor of the house on June 23, regarding debate on the general principles of the consolidated bills.The controversies started when one of the sponsors, Rep. John Dyegh (PDP- Benue), observed that he was not listed as part of the sponsors of the consolidated bills.Dyegh complained that he had sponsored a similar bill which went through due process in the previous assembly, but it didn’t receive Presidential assent.
He stated that he then cleaned up the bill and re-introduced it in the present assembly but it seemed to have been stood down without reasons.Gbajabiamila, however, reminded members that “in this, as in all cases; justice should not only be done, but be seen to have been done.“And if in truth Dyegh has a similar bill, it will be unfair to leave him out of the process after putting in so much work into the legislative process,” he said.(NAN)
