By Gabriel Atumeyi
365Daily – Human rights activist and co-convener of the Bring Back Our Girls (BBOG) movement, Aisha Yesufu, has accused the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila of dishonesty.
According to Yesufu, the leadership of both houses of the legislature, despite promising Nigerians that they would pass an electoral amendment that would satisfy their yearnings, have gone back on their words through the alterations in the Electoral Act amendments.
She made this known during a protest organised by several Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) at the gates of the National Assembly complex against alleged alterations in the Electoral Amendment Bill.
She said the lawmakers have shied away from being an independent and co-equal arm of government, thereby justifying the appellation of a rubber stamp legislature.
Yesufu added that the electoral bill is the only pathway towards having good, credible election and subsequently, good governance in the country.
She said: “We elected the lawmakers to be there when we are being oppressed and they are the same people who are coming to oppress us. It cannot happen.
“How long have we been fighting for the electoral reform? I was at the public hearing where the Senate President came out and said we should take his words and now we know that his words mean nothing.
Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, should be absolutely ashamed of himself. A man who stood and looked Nigerians in the face and said we should take his words.
“Gbajabiamiala that was fighting to be Speaker, only to be Speaker and sit there doing nothing. It can’t happen. We are saying this is a democracy and the legislative arm of government is independent. And today we are demanding that the transmission of results should be done electronically. This is the twenty first century. We have the means to transmit results electronically and you are denying us. Why?
“We want elections that would be credible, that would be fair, that would reflect the will of the people. Not what they want. The only way we can vote out bad governance is through credible electoral bill. We are not asking for too much. So that whenever we have good credible election in this country we will remember the ninth Assembly.