President Goodluck Jonathan has returned to the National Assembly the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (Fourth Alteration Act, 2015, aimed at amending the 1999 Constitution.
The president, in a letters addressed to Senate President David Mark and Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, read at the respective sessions of the two chambers Wednesday in Abuja, said he decided to veto the bill because the process of its passage negated the prescribed constitutional procedure.
Jonathan said he would not assent to the amendments because they did not satisfy the strict requirements of Section 9(3) of the 1999 Constitution.
The president also queried the resolution of the National Assembly to whittle down some executive powers of the president and that of the Attorney-General of the Federation.
He further kicked against some amendments to the Alteration Act which will give execu-tive powers and duties to the legislature and the judiciary.
Jonathan listed errors in the amendment to include: alteration to constitution cannot be valid with mere voice votes unless supported by the votes of not less than four-fifths majority all members of National Assembly and two-thirds of all the 36 State Houses of Assembly; right to free basic education and primary and maternal care services imposed on private institutions; flagrant violation of the doctrine of separation of powers and unjustified whittling down of the executive powers vested in the president by virtue of Section 5(1) of the 1999 constitution.
Other grouses of the president against the Act include the 30 days allowed for him to assent to the bill; limiting expenditure in default of appropriation from six months to three months; creation of the Office of Accountant-General of the Federation distinct from the Accountant General of the Federal Government; empowering the National Economic Council to appoint the Accountant-General of the Federation instead of the president and allowing the National Judicial Council to now appoint the Attorney-General of the Federation instead of the president.
Many senators were shocked when Mark read out the letter and it was learnt that the president’s veto might have set him on a collision course with the lawmakers, in the twilight of his administration.
It was gathered that the Senate might override his veto in line with the provisions of the constitution.
Before reading the letter from Jonathan, the President of the Senate had announced that the Chairman, Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, was calling for a two-day retreat for the members of the Committee, to hold between Wednesday (yesterday) and Thursday (today).
Shortly after reading the president’s letter, which raised a lot of constitutional and legal questions on the content of the 2015 Alteration Act, Senator Sadiq Yar’Adua, an APC member, representing Katsina Central, moved a point of order, asking the Senate to set aside its relevant rules and consider the letter.
Mark rejected the request and directed that the document should be photocopied and circulated to members to enable them to study for debate today.
The president also made the same observations on the Act in the letter sent to the House, which Tambuwal read at plenary.
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