The House of Representatives, on Wednesday, tested its electronic voting system ahead of consideration of the report by the Joint Senate and House Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution.

The Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, said the lawmakers would within the next two weeks vote on the Constitution amendment bills.

 Gbajabiamila asked members of the House to inform the Clerk on time if the computer attached to their respective seats is not working so it could be fixed immediately.

 “The constitution amendment voting is coming up in a week or two, and we will need the required numbers. It is the only way we can vote on constitutional amendment,” the Speaker said

 The Deputy Minority Leader, Toby Okechukwu, also advised the lawmakers to take their allotted seats when voting.

 “These votes are not just mere votes, they are matters of record. It will not be imagined or practised that a member is sitting on another person’s seat and votes. It will alter our records,” Okechukwu noted.

 Agreeing with the Okechukwu, Gbajabiamila said, “This is no longer a fledgling democracy, we are now in advanced democracy. And one of the essential ingredients of that is to be able to determine for the people back home that we represent, on whether we are voting in their interest or not.

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 “So, electronic voting is not just about the number but about records, the pattern of voting. In more advanced democracies, it can be used against you by your opponent that this was where you voted against the position of your constituents. So, it is important, therefore, that we sit at our respective seats.”

 The Minority Leader, Ndudi Elumelu, however, noted that having to take their original seats would mean that the social distance protocol against COVID-19 might be breached.

He, therefore, urged the lawmakers to wear their masks and sanitise appropriately during the exercise.

 Gbajabiamila also asked if all the lawmakers had been vaccinated.

 While Elumelu noted that vaccination does not contain the spread of COVID-19, he urged the lawmakers not to breach the safety protocols.