Senate Sets Up Ad Hoc Panel to Review Electoral Act Amendment

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

The Senate,  yesterday, constituted a high-powered ad hoc committee to review contentious clauses in the proposed amendments to the Electoral Act 2022, following concerns raised by lawmakers during a session held behind closed doors.

The decision was announced by the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, after the Red Chamber emerged from a three-hour executive session, where senators exhaustively examined the report of the Senate Committee on Electoral Matters, chaired by Senator Simon Lalong.

Akpabio said the adhoc panel would work closely with the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Legal Matters, chaired by Senator Adeniyi Adegbonmire, to harmonise divergent views and address grey areas identified during deliberations.

The Electoral Matters Committee’s report, which was initially scheduled for consideration on Wednesday, could not be taken due to the absence of its chairman, Senator Lalong, a former governor of Plateau State.

At the close of plenary on Wednesday, Akpabio directed that copies of the report be circulated to senators to enable them study it ahead of debate.

However, at the commencement of plenary yesterday, the Senate President announced an executive session, signalling a shift in approach as lawmakers opted to first deliberate on the sensitive provisions behind closed doors.

Addressing senators after plenary resumed, Akpabio said the report would undergo further scrutiny to reconcile issues raised during the executive session before being laid for final consideration.

According to him, the newly constituted ad hoc committee has been mandated to sit for 48 hours and submit its report on the third day for deliberation at plenary.

Members of the panel include:  Senators Adamu Aliero, Aminu Tambuwal, Adams Oshiomhole, Danjuma Goje, Tony Nwoye and Titus Zam. The Clerk of the Senate will serve as secretary to the committee.

Akpabio subsequently adjourned plenary to Tuesday next week.

Meanwhile, the Senate also recorded another defection, as Senator Pam Dachungyang, representing Plateau State, formally left the Action Democratic Party (ADP) for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Dachungyang’s defection letter was read on the floor of the Senate by Akpabio, ending weeks of speculation over the lawmaker’s political future.

In the letter titled: “Notice of Defection from the Action Democratic Party,” the senator cited irreconcilable differences and prolonged internal crises within the ADP, which he said had hindered his ability to function effectively as a lawmaker.

The defection further swelled the numerical strength of the APC in the Red Chamber, amid ongoing political realignments ahead of the 2027 general election.