I Will Sign Electoral Bill If NASS Includes Indirect Primaries, Consensus Candidates

President Muhammadu Buhari has given conditions that will enable him sign the Electoral Act Amendment Bill into law if returned by the National Assembly.

He said indirect primaries and consensus candidates must be contained in the bill he expects the National Assembly to send to him for assent.

The president had declined to assent the bill after noting that it will force political parties to embark on direct primaries as modes of electing candidates for election if signed into law.

He also said it would be expensive to fund by the government while also saying it will brew insecurity, reasons some of his critics consider untenable.

Speaking on Channels Television on Wednesday evening in a recorded exclusive interview, he said, “All I said (is that) there should be options,” he said.

“We must not insist that it has to be direct; it should be consensus and indirect.”

Asked if he would sign if the lawmakers effect the change in that direction, he affirmed, “Yes, I will! I will sign.”

He added that, “There should be options, you can’t dictate to people and say you are doing democracy. Give them other options so they can make a choice.”

Speaking on herders/farmers clashes, the president said he sent two governors who came to him to complain about herdsmen activities, to go back to local authorities and find out why there were crises all of a sudden.

He noted that there used to peace and expressed surprise why suddenly there were crises between the farmers and herders, forcing him to refer the two governors back home to find out why peace broke down.