Bill to impeach President after 30 days without cabinet passes second reading

A bill seeking to impeach a President after 30 days without a cabinet has passed its second reading in the House of Representatives.

The bill, which gives the President a 30-day time frame to pick his cabinet, scaled its first reading in December 2021 and is being sponsored by Kam Sokpo, a lawmaker from Benue state.

Here are what some sections of the bill stipulate;

Section 19(1) of the proposed bill stipulates that “the president shall on assumption of office, appoint ministers within 30 days from the date he took the oath of office.”

Section 19(2) of the bill provides that “the president shall constitute and appoint all boards of government agencies and parastatal that are due for constitution and appointment within two months from the date of his assumption of office.”

Section 19(3) stipulates that the president “shall be guilty of a misconduct as provided under section 143 (2) (b) of the Constitution” if he fails to comply with the provisions of the proposed bill. It also outlined how the president can be impeached when he is guilty of “gross misconduct in the
performance of the functions of his office”.

Sopko, who maintained that the law would ensure a smooth transition of power, said; 

“This bill seeks to provide for the procedure and ceremony for transition and assumption of the office of the president, and vice-president-elect by the president-elect and vice-president-elect, and to facilitate the handover process by the outgoing president and vice-president of the federal republic of Nigeria.”