INEC budget: Saraki, Dogara yet to decide when to reconvene NASS

The leadership of the National Assembly met on Monday evening towards the resolution of the stalemate over need to reconvene over the 2019 general election N242b supplementary budget of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Yussuff Lasun, had shortly after the meeting of the leadership over the same matter last week, said the federal lawmakers would reconvene today or tomorrow for the consideration of the supplementary budget. INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmud had earlier warned that the Commission stand to lose six month window for the procurement of some sensitive equipment to prosecute the election if the bill was not considered and passed within this period. The National Assembly is expected to resume from its two-month vacation on September 25. However, the political crisis currently rocking the National Assembly through defections and impeachment allegations has thrown the proposed emergency resumption into confusion. Chairman, House Committee on Media and Publicity, Abdulrazak Namdas, who spoke with our reporter yesterday on phone confirmed that the National Assembly would not reconvene today because the leadership was yet to reach a decision over it. He said: “We are not reconvening on Tuesday. This is because we are yet to make a decision over it, we are still meeting. As a matter of fact, the leadership will meet later on Monaday or Tuesday to decide when to reconvene”. As part of the prerequisite to reconvene the Assembly, When asked if the leadership of the political parties in both chambers have formally presented their reasons to the leadership to reconvene the Assembly since there was no national media advertisement to that effect, Namdas said he believed the right steps have been taken. “Everyone is aware of the rule book said on the procedure for this sort of sitting, I believe the right steps must have been taken, no one would do anything outside what is prescribed in the rule book,” the House Spokesman added.]]>