Ozekhome Faults Buhari for Signing Bills into Law in UK during Private Visit

Davidson Iriekpen

Human rights activist and senior lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), has described President

Muhammadu Buhari’s signing into law of a bill tagged, ‘Amended Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contract Bill’ into law in the United Kingdom during a private visit as a constitutional aberration.

President Buhari had last Monday in London signed into law the ‘Amended Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Act’ after Nigerians were told that he travelled to the UK on a private visit.

Ozekhome wondered why the President Buhari did not hand over powers to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo who could have signed the bill into law if it was urgent.

He argued that because the Nigerian Constitution did not envision a man-presidency where the absence of the president would automatically cripple governance, it made provision in Section 5(1) where it stated that the executive powers of the president be exercised “either directly or through the vice president and ministers of the government of the federation or officers in the public service of the federation.”

The activist stated that Nigeria as a sovereign country, has geographical boundaries, which cannot be arbitrarily extended or expanded whether in governance or influence.

He argued that signing the bill in a foreign country has evoked mixed reactions from Nigerians.

“As expected, some government apologists and sympathisers have already queued behind him and argued that he can govern Nigeria from any part of planet earth. This is a constitutional aberration, to say the least.

Ozekhome stated that travelling abroad outside the shores of Nigeria especially when it was not declared official duties certainly amounts to proceeding on vacation which required transmitting a letter to the National Assembly.