Speaker, House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, says there is no alteration in the Electoral Act Amendment Bill as being speculated in some quarters.
Gbajabiamila said this when he reacted to a point on matters of privilege by Rep Ugouna Ozurigbo (APC-Imo) at today’s plenary in Abuja.
Ozurigbo had claimed that he received information that the House Committee on Electoral Matters, chaired by Rep Aisha Duku (APC-Gombe) had altered the bill.
“A number of Nigerians, particularly in my constituency, have been calling me to express their concerns about possible alteration to the electoral bill.
“I am a member of the committee, I don’t know the information going around where they said that we carefully amended Section 50 sub-section 2 of the Electoral Bill.
“That the agreed electronically transmitted election results have been changed to become manually transmitted,” he said
The Speaker, however, said that the speculation was unfounded.
“I really don’t want to speak on a report that has not yet been submitted to the House,” he said.
He said that the committee had been given an assignment that would be submitted to the House once the job is finished.
“I have asked the chairman of the committee and she said that nothing of such has been done,” he said.
Gnajabiamila said that the report would be laid before the House proceeds on its recess on July 14.
Meanwhile, four lawmakers from Zamafara have defected to the All Progressives Congress from the Peoples Democratic Party.
They included Bello Hassan, Ahmed Bakura, Suleiman Gumi and Ahmed Shehu.
This is coming barely a week after two lawmakers from the state also defected from the PDP to the APC.
Their detection has increased the number of APC lawmakers from the state to six, leaving only one lawmaker who vowed not to leave the PDP.
(NAN)
