By Thompson ABISOLA
President Muhammadu Buhari has communicated to the Senate and House of Representatives his decision on the Electoral (Amendment) Bill, 2018 in accordance with the powers vested in him by the 1999 Constitution.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Sen. Ita Enang, made this known when he briefed State House correspondents in Abuja on Friday.
Enang, who refused to disclose the content of the president’s communication to the National Assembly, neither confirmed assent nor rejection of the bill by the president.
He said: “The president has taken a decision in a accordance with the powers vested in him according to the constitution.
“And by convention that decision contained in the communication can only be revealed by the person to whom that decision is addressed.
“But the electoral bill has left Mr. President because he has taken a decision and has remitted it back.”
When further asked why the president returned the bill back to NASS, the presidential aide said: “The president has communicated his decision to the National Assembly and that is what it is now.’’
According to him, it is the National Assembly that can reveal the content of the communication.
However, if rejected, this will be fourth time the bill is being returned to the National Assembly by the President.
Meanwhile, Enang said that the president had assented to the National Open University (Amendment) Act, 2018.
He said: “Again, President Buhari has also assented to National Open University Amendment Act, which allows the National Open University to operate as all other universities, having the same power and functions and the same administrative structures eliminating possible discrimination as some used to want to have on its products and programmes.
“It has also allowed the establishment of some centres to be called study centers and given conditions for the establishment of such study centres.’’
