Plot to amend House rules thickens

A group of lawmakers are plotting to amend the House of Representatives standing order on voting procedure during the election of the Speaker.

Election of Speaker and principal officers is the first assignment the lawmakers will carry out when they resume next month.

Among the front runners are Hon. Yakubu Dogara (Bauchi), Femi Gbajabiamila (Lagos), Abdulmimin Jibrin (Kano) and Pally Iriase (Edo).

The group pushing for the amendment of rules is mobilising members to support amendment of Order 2, Rule 4 (f) (ii) of the House Standing Orders 2014, which states that: “Voting by secret ballot shall be conducted by the Clerk-at-Table using the list of the members-elect of the House, who shall each be given a ballot paper to cast his vote, with the proposer and seconder as tellers.”

The motion was initially planned to be tabled on Wednesday, but the plot was aborted at the 11th minute after the promoters realised that they didn’t have enough support.

“They have planned to propose the amendment under matters of urgent public importance on Wednesday, but changed their minds after realising that it will be defeated,” a ranking member, who does not want to be named, said.


The lawmaker said the group is planning to “come under a substantive motion on Tuesday to propose amendment to the voting pattern from secret to open ballot.”

The aim of the amendment, according to the source, is to achieve the purpose of intimidating members to vote for a particular candidate

“Secondly, we are also aware that they want to induce member with money to vote for their candidate but they want to make sure that those who collects their money votes for their candidate.

“It is both hypocritical and disingenuous for the same people who pushed for the adoption of the secret ballot four years ago to now work against it for selfish reasons,” the source said.

The House rule was altered few days to the election of Aminu Waziri Tambuwal as Speaker in May 2011, following threats by the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) members supporting Tambuwal.