The House of Representatives on Thursday stepped down a bill aimed at amending the Electoral Act, which would require voters intending to transfer their registration data to have resided in the constituency they applied for, for a minimum of two months.
The Bill titled, “A Bill for or an Act to Amend Section 13 of the Electoral Act, 2022 to introduce new provisions to ensure that a person seeking transfer of his or her voter’s registration data resides in the constituency to which he or she applied for” was sponsored by the lawmaker representing Ikeja Federal Constituency, Lagos State, Abiodun Faleke on the floor of the House on Thursday.
The proposed legislation slated for second reading was stepped down following heated debates by lawmakers across party divides.
Faulting the provision of the bill which required that applicant seeking transfer of his or her voter’s registration data must provide his utility bill, member representing Etche/Omuma Federal Constituency, Rivers State, Kelechi Nwogu, said that the bill, though well-intended, will disenfranchise eligible voters, if passed into law.
“Asking eligible voters to show prove of residency through utility bill will disenfranchise eligible voters. Though the bill has good intention, but I suggest the aspect where voters must prove their residence by their utility bill should be removed because most tenants don’t pay utility bill in their name but in landlords’ name,” the lawmaker said.
On his part, the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, also speaking on the bill, said it should be stepped down for further legislative action.
He called for a step down of the bill to enable the sponsor to make necessary adjustments ahead of fresh presentation before the House.
“This bill should be stepped down because asking voters who intend to change their voting centre to prove their residency in such constituency is not encouraging.
“In the last election (2023), we saw the wide difference between registered voters and those who eventually voted. We should be looking for ways to encourage voters not make them stay away from voting.
“Asking voters to get approval from community leaders even after proving that they live in that constituency is a way of disenfranchising an eligible voter. How do we define who a community leader is? What are the criteria to become a community leader? What if the community leader does not like your face? So, I suggest that this bill be step down,” he said.
Given the near-unanimous rejection of the bill, the Speaker, Abbas Tajudeen, who presided over plenary called on Faleke to decide whether to speak further, to which the All Progressives Congress lawmaker said, “All Nigerians submit utility bills in the bank for accounts opening. You can pay utility bills in your name and not in the name of the landlord. This bill has generated so much controversy and I will step it down for further legislative review.”
Leave a Reply