The House of Representatives Thursday rejected a bill seeking to amend the 1999 constitution to provide for a single term of six years for the offices of the President, State Governors and Local Government Chairmen.
The intent of the proposed legislation was to ensure inclusive governance and to curb wastages occasioned by four year periodic elections.
The Bill seeks zonal rotation of presidential and governorship seats, as well as holding of the elections in one day
The bill sponsored by Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere and 33 other lawmakers also seeks to alter Sections 76, 116, 132, 136, and some others of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The general principle of the bill showed that it seeks amendment of Section 132 of the Principal Act by inserting a new Sub-section (2), deleting the extant Sub-section (4) and renumbering the entire section accordingly to provide that an election to the office of President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be rotated between the North and the South regions of the country every six years.
The Bill also seeks to amend Section 76 of the Principal Act by inserting a new Sub-section (3) as follows;
“(3) For the Purposes of Section (1) of this section, all elections into the offices of President, Governors, National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly shall hold simultaneously on the same date to be determined by the Independent National Electoral Commission in consultation with the National Assembly and in accordance with the Electoral Act.”
It added: “Section 116 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting a new a subsection (3) as follows; For the purposes of Sub-section (1) of this Section, all elections into the offices of President, Governors, National Assembly, State Houses of Assembly and Local Government Councils shall be held simultaneously on the same date to be determined by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in consultation with the National Assembly and in accordance with the Electoral Act.
When the Bill was put to a voice vote by the Speaker, Hon. Tajudeen Abass who presided over the plenary session, it was the nays that had it.
