PDP Reacts to Harmonised Electoral Amendment Bill, Set to Give Update in 48hrs

• As reactions follow the harmonisation of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill by the National Assembly, the People Democratic Party has reacted
• The PDP said it will make its position known on the harmonised bill within the next 48 hours in which the process was finalised
• The party also said that it is unconstitutional for a party to impose its internal political processes on another party

Abuja -Nigeria's largest opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has reacted to the recent harmonisation of the electoral amendment bill by lawmakers of the National Assembly.

The PDP in a statement signed by its national publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, on Tuesday, November 9, said it has received details of the passage of the electoral amendment bill which provides for direct primaries for parties' nomination of candidates.

Ologbondiyan said that the PDP holds that no single party has the sole right to impose its process on another party as provided by the 1999 Constitution as amended.

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The decision of the National Assembly unconstitutional

According to him, within Nigeria's constitutional democracy, another political party cannot force its form of internal democratic practices for elections at any level.

He further noted that having received the news, the PDP would within the next 48 hours make its final decision on the amended bill known.

Lawmakers of the National Assembly had on Tuesday, November 9, during a joint plenary harmonised the Electoral Amendment Act, Bill.

Harmonisation of the bill by the National Assembly

The lawmakers during the process harmonised a total of 21 clauses including the contentious clause 52 which makes provision for Electronic Transmission of Election Result(ETR) during elections in Nigeria.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that the Senate had approved and passed into law the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Act 2010 (Amendment) Bill, 2018 on Tuesday, October 23, 2018.

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The Senate said the Nigerian president will give his assent as the country now has an electoral process.

Also, civil society organisations in Nigeria had called on the National Assembly to amend the electoral bill in order to give way to a better electoral process across the country.

The CSOs totalling 14 in number said it is important the bill is passed before the next cycle of elections in the country.

According to the organisations, elections are the pivot and constant features of any democracy and it is important that all conditions needed for free, fair and credible elections in any country are rightly met.

The organisations also said that having the right instruments in place for the proper election processes will ensure that “the sovereign will of the people” prevail always.

Source: Legit.ng