Senate urges Jonathan to return rejected Bill

The Senate yesterday urged President Goodluck Jonathan to return to it the rejected Constitution Amendment Bill complete with the signature page.

 

The call followed the Senate’s resolution on the matter which mandated the Senate President to formally write a letter to Jonathan to demand the immediate return the rejected Bill.

 

Dr. Jonathan wrote a letter to the Senate detailing reasons why he cannot accent to the amended Constitution. It   cost taxpayers about N4billion for National Assembly and the 36 states Houses of Assembly to carry out the amendment.

 

The resolution followed a motion on personal explanation moved by Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu.

 

Ekweremadu who is also the Chairman of the Senate Adhoc Committee on the review of the Constitution, told the Senate that a two-day retreat called by the committee to appropriately study Mr. President’s rejection letter and report back to the Upper Chamber had to be suspended when it was discovered that the amendment Bill did not accompany the President’s letter.

 

Ekweremadu said: “We slated a two-day retreat to consider the letter and advise the Senate appropriately.

 

“In the course of our sitting yesterday, we noticed that in the second to the last paragraph of that letter, the President said he was returning the Bill with the letter.

 

“Unfortunately, the Bill was not returned with the letter and we could not proceed because we would like to see the returned bill.”

 

He added: “The committee has asked me to raise this point and to request the President of the Senate, to ask the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to send back the original copy of the bill as sent to him especially the signature page to enable us to proceed with our work.

 

“Especially since he had indicated in his own letter that the letter was accompanied by the Bill, so we would like to have the bill in its original form, especially the signature page.”

 

Senate President David Mark, said he would act on the resolution of the Senate and write formally to the President to return the Bill to the Senate “within the earliest possible time.”

 

Mark said: “It is a personal explanation so there will be no need to put it to debate. I think the important thing is that if the floor accepts that I send that letter then I will write a letter to Mr. President to return the original copy of the Bill to us.

 

“This was referred to your committee, so if that is the decision of the committee then we have little or no option on the floor here.

 

“There is a bit of urgency on this so in writing that we should have it at the earliest possible time, we cannot put a time frame like `within two days or three days’ that would not be correct. The motion as it is a correct motion without the time frame.”