From Victor osula, Abuja
With the approval of the Gombe State House of Assembly, the constitutional requirement for the passage of the Independent Candidacy bill, has been met.
Responding to the development, the Senate has okayed the bill and directed the Clerk to the National Assembly to transmit a Constitution Alteration Bill No. 58 to President Muhammadu Buhari for assent in line with the provisions of the Authentication Act.
The Deputy President of the Senate, Ovie Omo-Agege, in a motion on Tuesday, informed his colleagues that the Gombe State House of Assembly has approved the Constitution Alteration Bill Nos. 46 and 58 and forwarded its resolution to the National Assembly.
Omo-Agege, who is the Chairman of the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Constitution Review, said that with the approval of the Gombe Assembly, the bills on the independent candidacy and inclusion of National Assembly presiding officers in the National Security Council membership have met the provisions of Section 9(2) of the Constitution for passage.
The bill seeks to provide for independent candidacy in Presidential, Governorship, National and State Assemblies and Local Government Councils elections.
The Senate, after adopting the motion, directed the Clerk to the National Assembly to transmit the bills to the President for his assent.
For any Nigerian national to contest a presidential election as an independent candidate, he or she must obtain the verified signatures of at least 20% of registered voters from each State of the Federation provided that a registered voter shall not sign for more than one independent candidate in respect of the same office.
For governorship, the independent candidate must obtain the verified signatures of at least twenty percent of registered voters from each of the Local Government Areas of the state.
The bill also states that anyone willing to contest National Assembly elections, he or she must obtain the verified signatures of at least twenty percent of registered voters from each of the Local Government Areas in the respective senatorial district or federal constituency.
The proposed legislation empowers the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to prescribe the payment of administrative fees by independent candidates for respective elections.
It also mandates the electoral body INEC, to waive fifty percent of the administrative fees for women candidates.
