The house of representatives has rejected a bill seeking a
six-year single term for Nigeria’s president.
The bill, slated for a second reading, was rejected during
Thursday’s plenary session.
The bill, which was sponsored by Ikeagwuonu Ugochinyere from
Imo state and 33 other lawmakers, also proposed a six-year term for governors
and rotation of executive powers among the six geopolitical zones to “ensure
equal representation and reduce the desperation and tempo of agitation for the
creation of states”.
Currently, the 1999 constitution stipulates that a candidate
can be elected for a four-year term and can be re-elected for another term,
after which he or she can no longer contest for office.
The lawmakers also sought to amend section 3 of the
constitution to provide for the recognition of the division of Nigeria into six
geopolitical zones.
They also recommended creating the office of two vice
presidents from the southern and northern parts of the country.
The lawmakers suggested holding the presidential,
governorship, national assembly, state houses of assembly, and local government
elections on the same day.
The house swiftly and unanimously rejected the bill when
Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house, called for a voice vote following
Ugochinyere’s motion for the bill to be read a second time.
The “nays” were louder than the “ayes” with the speaker
ruling in favour of the majority.
Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar is one of the
proponents of a six-year single term for president.
In September, Abubakar sent a proposal to the national
assembly, requesting that the presidency should be rotational among the six
geo-political zones of the country.
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