Senate to consider diaspora voting bill

The Nigeria Senate has assured that it will reconsider the Diaspora Voting Bill this week, while it is recalled that the 9th Senate had in March 2022, rejected the bill on diaspora voting.

Penpushing reports that the Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele of All Progressives Congress (APC) Ekiti State gave the assurance during a virtual dialogue organised by Engage Diaspora Foundation in collaboration with the Directorate of Diaspora and International Affairs of his office with the theme, “A Pivotal Step Toward Achieving Diaspora Voting Right.”

‘Nigerian citizens in diaspora have shown tremendous interest in participating in the electoral process; they make considerable contributions to the economy through huge financial remittances to the country. Diaspora voting is consistent with global best practices,” he said.

Penpushing further reports that Bamidele who was the chief host/chief speaker at the event in his presentation assured Nigerians in Diaspora that the 10th Senate would put in more efforts to pass the bill this time around.

“We will do our best to make sure that this time around, we achieve your desire in this regard. When you talk about diaspora voting, it is a right; if anybody is granting you that right, it is not as if they are grating you any favour. It is your right’.

‘The essence of this fight is just to make sure that the right is recognised in our constitution because the constitution is the basis upon which every other thing rests. The constitution is the operational manual for both the government and the governed in our country. It is a right that must be recognised by our law as enshrined in the constitution. Whatever I’m doing with you is not new. I’m trying to build on the effort, genuine effort, people had built in the past and which they are still making.”

Penpushing also reports that Bamidele added that the bill was already on the floor of the senate, stating that precisely two weeks ago the senate had a first reading of the Diaspora Voting Bill, and already scheduled for second reading

‘And exactly two Tuesdays ago, we had a first reading of the Diaspora Voting Bill. It passed the first reading and it was scheduled for the second. Definitely, I can assure you as the leader of the Senate, we will be considering the second reading of the bill during this week,” he said.

Penpushing reports that Bamidele explained that when that is done, the bill will be referred to the Constitution Review Committee because the committee is chaired by the Deputy President of the Senate and the Vice Chairman is the Leader of the Senate.

‘We are a part of your movement in this regard and then you can be rest assured, even anyone trying to convince me on the need to pass this bill, will need to be converted. I’m very much with you in this effort because I see this fight as a generational fight. It’s not just the constitution recognising your right to vote in the diaspora, your children and grandchildren and generations coming after us’.

‘It is also about ensuring greater inclusion in our process. We cannot just be so interested in the benefits coming from the Nigeria Diaspora community while also denying what is supposed to be your own constitutional right,” he said.

Penpushing further reports that the bill had sought to amend the 1999 Constitution to allow Nigerians living outside the country to participate in the electoral process of voting and be voted for.

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