Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticised the Senate’s decision to reject the mandatory electronic transmission of election results in the amendment of Nigeria’s Electoral Act, describing it as a sign that lawmakers are unwilling to subject elections to public scrutiny.
Atiku, one of the key promoters of the coalition seeking to unseat President Bola Tinubu, said the decision amounts to a deliberate assault on Nigeria’s electoral system.
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In a statement issued on Thursday, the former vice president warned that the rejection would undermine electoral reforms and weaken transparency, credibility, and public trust in the country’s democratic process.
“The decision of the Nigerian Senate to reject the real-time electronic transmission of election results is a deliberate assault on electoral transparency.
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“This ill-advised action represents a grave setback for electoral reform and a calculated blow against transparency, credibility, and public trust in Nigeria’s democratic process,” he said.
Preference for opaque system
Atiku, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), berated the Senate for the decision, arguing that the lawmakers prefer an opaque electoral system that protects loopholes rather than promotes transparency.
“At a time when democracies across the world are strengthening their electoral systems through technology, the Nigerian Senate has chosen to cling to opacity, protect loopholes, and preserve a system that has historically enabled manipulation, tampering, and post-election disputes,” he said.
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The former vice president, who came second in the 2023 presidential election, maintained that electronic transmission of results would significantly reduce human interference and manipulation during and after vote counting.
“Real-time electronic transmission of results is not a partisan demand; it is a democratic safeguard. It reduces human interference, limits result manipulation, and ensures that the will of the voter, expressed at the polling unit, is faithfully reflected in the final outcome.
“To reject it, and adopt what is obviously a face-saving provision of the 2022 Act on electronic transmission of results is to signal an unwillingness to submit elections to public scrutiny.”
Questions over 2027 elections
The former vice president questioned the rationale behind the Senate’s decision and linked it to concerns about the ruling party’s commitment to conducting free, fair, and credible elections in 2027.
“This decision raises troubling questions about the commitment of the ruling political establishment to free, fair, and credible elections in 2027.
“Nigerians cannot ignore the pattern: every reform that strengthens transparency is resisted, while every ambiguity that benefits incumbency is preserved.”
Atiku insisted that elections should reflect the will of the people and not be determined through manipulation or institutional failures.
“I have consistently maintained that democracy must evolve with time, technology, and the legitimate expectations of the people. Elections must be decided by voters, not by manual delays, backroom alterations, procedural excuses or even by the courts, which section is shamelessly standing on the mandate of the incumbent.”
He called on Nigerians, civil society organisations, the media, and the international community to oppose the amendment, insisting that the country deserves a transparent and verifiable electoral process.
“I call on Nigerians, civil society organizations, the media, and the international community to take note of this regression and to continue demanding an electoral system that reflects modern democratic standards.
“Nigeria deserves elections that are transparent, verifiable, and beyond manipulation. Anything less is an injustice to the electorate and a betrayal of democracy.”
Electoral Act amendment
On Wednesday, the Senate passed amendments to the 2022 Electoral Act after more than five hours of debate and clause-by-clause consideration.
One of the major decisions taken by the lawmakers was the rejection of the proposal to make the electronic transmission of election results from polling units to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s Result Viewing Portal (IREV) mandatory after vote counting.
Instead, under Clause 60, the Senate retained the provision in the 2022 Electoral Act that allows election results to be transmitted to the collation centre.
On voter identification under Clause 47, lawmakers rejected a proposal to allow alternative means of identification for voting aside from the Permanent Voter Card (PVC). Rather, they replaced “smart card readers” with the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for accreditation and voting, thereby retaining the PVC as the sole mandatory means of identification at polling units.
Initially, the bill had proposed that since BVAS does not read the microchip embedded in PVCs, the card should no longer be compulsory for voting, allowing the use of the National Identification Number (NIN), Nigerian passport, or birth certificate. However, the Senate disagreed with this proposal and retained the PVC as the primary mode of voter identification.
On Clause 22, which prescribes penalties for PVC-related offences, lawmakers rejected a proposed 10-year jail term for the buying and selling of PVCs. Instead, they retained the two-year imprisonment term and increased the fine from ₦2 million to ₦5 million.
Regarding proof of non-compliance, the Senate deleted Clause 142, which would have allowed parties to prove non-compliance solely through original or certified documents without oral evidence. The lawmakers, during the clause-by-clause consideration argued that the provision would amount to a “waste of time in court.”
On ballot paper inspection, Clause 44 retained the existing procedure, which gives political parties two days to submit written approval or disapproval of their representations on sample ballot papers. INEC is also required to invite parties to inspect sample electoral materials at least 20 days before an election.
Under Clause 29, the deadline for political parties to submit their list of candidates was reduced from 120 days to 90 days before the election.
To curb vote buying, lawmakers amended Clause 22 to impose stiffer penalties, increasing the fine for offenders from ₦500,000 to ₦5 million.
On post-election disputes, the Senate amended Clause 136 by removing the power of election tribunals to declare winners outright in certain circumstances. The amendment now provides that where a candidate is found not to have been validly elected for failing to score the majority of lawful votes, a rerun election shall be conducted, with the disqualified candidate and the sponsoring party barred from participating.
This section contradicts provision of the 2022 Electoral Act, which provides that where an election tribunal nullifies an election on the ground that the candidate with the highest votes was not qualified, the candidate with the second-highest number of valid votes should be declared elected.
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