Will senate go ahead to override Jonathan?

President Goodluck Jonathan’s rejecting amendments to the 1999 Constitution, caused different reactions among some members of the National Assembly.

Some of them expressed their surprise at the reasons why the president vetoed the bill openly.

Chairman, Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution (4th Alteration Bill 2015), Senator Ike Ekweremadu, declared that his members would hold a two-day retreat from Wednesday to Thursday to review the case.

Senator Abubakar Yar’Adua (Katsina central) raised a point of order and repeated that the development to be discussed because of the serious fundamental issues raised by current leader of the country, which affected the unity of the National Assembly.

Yar’Adua said: “I think it is important for us to discuss that letter and see whether there is need for us to consider the letter or not.

“I think the President has raised very serious fundamental issues, especially in terms of our conscience as lawmakers and his own position as the chief executive officer of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. That is why I am raising this point or order.”

Although Mark agreed with Yar’Adua that the letter should be discussed, he said that the debate could only be significant after members would have studied the letter at home.

The Senate president said: “Obviously, this letter is not like any other normal letter. We can’t discuss the letter unless you have a copy of it. So, the first reaction is for me to make copies available to everybody and you go and study it.

“If you notice that there is an announcement also by the Constitution Review Committee that they(members) are going to meet. So, that will straight away go to them. I agree with you that weighty issues have been raised. It’s a peculiar case; so everybody will be involved.”

Also a principal officer, Vanguard source, said that there were two choices before the National Assembly on the case.

He said either the institution approves the position of Jonathan or go ahead to override it. 

The officer said: “We don’t know why he (Jonathan) decided to go this way. It is something that Nigerians having been looking forward to and as we managed to break the Jinx, we tought it was a legacy the 7th Senate is going to leave behind.”

Also collaborating what his colleagues had said, senator Ita Enang from Akwa Ibom state said the president should have raised the issues during the various public hearings held by the National Assembly and not wait until after it was approved by the parliament.

It should be recalled that Jonathan, had in the letter, said he would not approve of the amendments as it did not satisfy the strict demands of Section 9(3) of the 1999 Constitution.

Nigeria’s president made his position known in a seven-page letter to David Mark and House of Representatives Speaker Aminu Tambuwal.
He registered 12 errors in the amendments.