The Presidency has denied reports that President Muhammadu Buhari declined assent to the Electoral Act Amendment Bill which was recently transmitted to him by the National Assembly.
President Buhari’s senior media assistant, Garba Shehu, denied the claim during a telephone chat with THE WHISTLER on Thursday.
A national daily had reported that the president rejected the bill on the grounds of the “high cost” of conducting direct primaries to nominate candidates for the various political parties during elections.
The report also claimed that the president had written to the Senate and House of Representatives, informing them of the alleged rejection.
But Shehu denied knowledge of the development, saying “I have not been briefed about it”.
A National Assembly source who spoke to this newspaper described the report as “mere speculation”.
The National Assembly had transmitted the bill to President Buhari on November 19. The president has within 30 days to either assent to the bill or reject it.
