JUST IN: SENATE DID NOT REJECT ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION OF ELECTION RESULTS — AKPABIO CLARIFIES

SENATE DID NOT REJECT ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION OF ELECTION RESULTS — AKPABIO CLARIFIES


The Senate has dismissed widespread reports suggesting that it rejected the electronic transmission of election results during deliberations on the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill.

Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, issued the clarification on Tuesday after the upper legislative chamber concluded consideration and passage of the bill following a prolonged closed-door session lasting over four hours.

The controversy emerged from debates surrounding Clause 60, Subsection 3, of the amendment bill, which addresses the procedure for transmitting election results. Deliberations began at approximately 2:00 p.m. and ended at 6:26 p.m., triggering intense speculation on social media that lawmakers had voted against mandatory electronic transmission of results.

Several reports claimed that the Senate had rejected a proposal that would compel presiding officers of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to electronically transmit polling unit results in real time to the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal after signing and stamping result sheets.

Instead, critics alleged that the Senate retained the existing provision of the Electoral Act, which allows results to be transmitted “in a manner as prescribed by the Commission,” without explicitly mandating electronic transmission.

However, Akpabio described such interpretations as misleading, insisting that the Senate did not remove electronic transmission from the law.

Addressing his colleagues on the floor of the Senate, Akpabio said reports circulating online misrepresented the chamber’s decision.

According to him, the amendment merely retained provisions already contained in the existing Electoral Act, which permitted electronic transmission and was applied during the 2023 general elections.

He stressed that the Senate had not reversed any progress made in previous electoral reforms, noting that electronic transmission remains legally recognised.

Akpabio further stated that the Senate’s decision was consistent with its commitment to electoral transparency and that detailed voting records and proceedings could be made available to any interested party upon request.

The Senate President also underscored that abandoning electronic transmission would amount to regression, a step the National Assembly was unwilling to take.

Electronic transmission of election results has remained one of the most contentious aspects of Nigeria’s electoral reform process since the 2023 general elections. Civil society organisations, opposition parties, and election observers have repeatedly called for clearer and more explicit legal provisions to strengthen transparency and public confidence in the electoral system.

Akpabio’s intervention was aimed at addressing public concerns and countering what he described as either deliberate or careless misrepresentation of the Senate’s actions, as lawmakers continue work on electoral reforms ahead of future elections.

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