Just as the Nigerian Judiciary is passing through a tough time trying to manage a battered image stemming from perceived conflicting and controversial judgements, so are members of the 10th National Assembly.
While a large number of Nigerians have nicknamed them rubber stamp Assembly, Spokesperson of the dissolved Atiku Abubakar presidential campaign during the 2023 presidential election, Daniel Bwala thinks that this National Assembly is worse than they have been labelled.
Bwala, who spoke during an Arise TV programme on Monday, harped on the need for electoral reform ahead of the 2027 general election, to avoid cases of unjust or conflicting judgements by the Court of Appeal, currently rocking some states.
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Bwala noted that if the 10th National Assembly could go back to the reform Agenda put in place by its predecessor, Nigeria will have a more credible elections in 2027.
Having served as a person in the office of the Deputy Senate President during the 9th Assembly, Bwala explained that “Traditionally, that office handles constitutional amendments. I began the process and I remember the extensive advisory we gave, in fact, the Deputy Senate President was open to some of these reforms that we introduced. We produced a bill which was sponsored in the National Assembly but as it went round Nigeria, some states knocked it down.
“We provided for pre pre-election; that is to say time limit for which congress matters should be determined and not brought forward to the primaries, time which the primaries has to stop and then you go to the election tribunal. We did not want a situation where somebody will win an election and then, a court will remove him for whatever reason.”
He emphasised that “If the 10th Assembly will go back to the reform agenda and bring them forward it will help. With respect to the Electoral Act, if you leave it at the Electoral Act level, what happened in 2023 will be applied where lawyers and parties went about saying that electronic transmission is merely a guideline because it is not in the Electoral Act and it’s not in the Constitution. If the National Assembly will carry the balls to bring this reform, it will be helpful.”
Bwala however noted that he was not certain if the 10th Assembly would carry out the reform adding that “This 10th Assembly is worse than a rubber stamp. Rubber stamp is even better because in the rubber stamp Assembly that was termed the 9th Assembly, at least they would deliberate, debate, interrogate the executive but the executive will end up finding their way. This one they don’t debate, interrogate; they don’t do anything. You heard it from among their members, not external people, that when bills are brought to the house they are passed speedily, thereby bypassing the procedure for bill passage.”
He further surmised that “Reform agenda cannot be successful without removing the INEC chairman, changing the INEC commissioners because majority of the commissioners are members of a political party. Also, without doing extra work, go back to the 9th Assembly and pick the reform proposals.”
And still on the 10th National Assembly but this time, on how it may choose to handle the recent request for approval of loans by the Tinubu administration, Dr Reuben Abati on Arise TV show, first declared that “Its inevitable that the Tinubu administration will seek the approval of the National Assembly to borrow more money.”
