Condemnation trails Senate’s passage of Electoral Act amendment Bill

Senate’s decision to reject real-time e-transmission of poll results serious betrayal of democracy -Atiku

It’s one of the most retrogressive and anti-people decisions taken by Senate since 1999-Labour Party

Red Chamber retains electronic transmission of results as provided for in 2002 Electoral Act

Emeka Agu with agency reports

Condemnation on Wednesday trailed the passage of the Electoral Act (amendment) Bill by the Senate.

While former Vice President Atiku Abubakar condemned the Senate’s decision to reject the real-time electronic transmission of election results, the Senator Nenadi Usman-led Labour Party (LP) described the rejection of the real-time electronic transmission of election results as a shameful betrayal of Nigerians by persons elected to represent them.

Recall that the Senate at plenary on Wednesday passed the Electoral Act (amendment) Bill to regulate the conduct of the federal, state and Area Council elections in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The passage followed the clause by clause consideration of the bill by the lawmakers in the Committee of the Whole on Wednesday.

In his remarks after the approval, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, commended the committee for a great job.

“I salute you, the Chairman, Sen. Niyi Adegbonmire, for your dexterity, hard work, your patriotism and your love for your country.

“So let me just mention the fact that there were no deliberate attempts on the part of the Nigerian Senate to delay the amendment of the Electoral Act.

“Our intention has always been to ensure that we do our best and we do it painstakingly, taking our time to ensure that what comes out reflects the yearnings and aspirations of all Nigerians,” he said.

Akpabio said that the senate, in consideration of the bill, retained Clause 60 which was on the ‘Electronic Transmission of Results’.

“The social media is already awash with the fact that the senate has rejected electronic transmission. That is not true.

“Electronic transmission has always been in our hearts. And what we did was to retain the electronic transmission, which has been in our hearts, and which was used in 2020.

“So please, do not allow people to confuse you. If you are in doubt, we will make our final votes and proceedings available to you if you apply and you are entitled, so that you’ll see.

“This senate, under my watch, has not rejected electronic transmission of results. It’s in my interest, as a participant in the next election for such to be done.

“So please don’t go with the crowd. We have retained what was in the previous provision. That’s all we did.

“So if we rejected what was proposed by way of amendment and said let’s retain what was in the previous provision, the previous provision has made provisions for electronic transmission. So it is still there as part of our laws,” Akpabio said.

The senate president further said that Nigeria should be moving forward, not moving backward, adding: “There is no way we can, in this era of electronics, we will now be going backwards”.

He, thereafter, announced the membership of the Conference Committee with Sen. Niyi Adegbonmire as chairman.

Members of the committee are: Senators Simon Lalong, Mohammed Monguno, Adamu Aliero, Orji Kalu, Abba Moro, Asuquo Ekpenyong, Aminu Abbas and Tokunbo Abiru.

Akpabio urged them to work assiduously to bring “this back for us to give to Mr President so that within this month, we can commence the process of procurement after the president’s signature”.

Earlier, the Senate had amended Clause 22(C) which is on Offences of ‘Buying and selling of voter’s card’.

It now read: “any person who offers to buy, sells or offers to sell votes whether on his own behalf or on behalf of any other person commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of not more than N5 million or imprisonment of not more than two years.

Clause 28 on Notice of Election was also amended by reducing the notice of election from 360 days to 180 days.

“Commission shall not later than 180 days before the day appointed for holding of an election under this bill, publish a notice in each state of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory,” it read.

Clause 29, as amended, also read: “Every political party shall, not later than 90 days before the date appointed for a general election under this bill, submit to the commission in the prescribed Forms.

Clause 47 was amended to make Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) as mode of accreditation with Permanent Voter Card as mode of identification.

The News Agency of Nigeria NAN reports that the Senate, thereafter, adjourned sitting till Feb. 24 to allow for budget defence.

Meanwhile, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has condemned the Senate’s decision to reject the real-time electronic transmission of election results, describing it as a serious betrayal of democracy that undermines transparency, credibility and public trust in the country’s electoral process.

Atiku, a chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, made the remarks in a statement issued by his Media Office on Wednesday, where he described the Senate’s action as a deliberate attack on electoral transparency.

The condemnation followed the Senate’s rejection of a proposed amendment to Clause 70(3) of the Electoral Amendment Bill, which sought to make the electronic transmission of election results mandatory.

Reacting, Atiku said rejecting real-time electronic transmission and relying on the 2022 provision amounted to a refusal to subject elections to full public scrutiny.

The statement read in part: “The former Vice President of Nigeria and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, condemns, in the strongest terms, the decision of the Nigerian Senate to reject the real-time electronic transmission of election results.

“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.

“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.

 “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 the 2022 provision on so-called electronic transmission of results is to signal an unwillingness to submit elections to public scrutiny. This decision raises troubling questions about the commitment of the ruling political establishment to free, fair and credible elections in 2027.”

He emphasised that Nigerians are entitled to elections that are transparent, credible and free from manipulation.

The statement further reads: “Nigerians cannot ignore the pattern: every reform that strengthens transparency is resisted, while every ambiguity that benefits incumbency is preserved.

“Atiku Abubakar has 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 or procedural excuses.

“We call on Nigerians, civil society organisations, 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.”

In the same vein, the Senator Nenadi Usman-led Labour Party (LP) has described the rejection of electronic transfer of results by the Nigerian Senate as a shameful betrayal of Nigerians by persons elected to represent them.

Mr. Ken Asogwa, Special Adviser of the Interim National Chairman of the party, Senator Nenadi Usman, said this while responding to the Senate decision on Wednesday.

He said: “The decision of the Nigerian Senate to reject the electronic transmission of election results from polling units to the INEC server is one of the most retrogressive and anti-people decisions taken by the Nigerian legislature since the return to democracy in 1999.

“Since the 2023 general elections, the singular and consistent clamour of the Nigerian people has been for the electronic transmission of results, as a means of checking the irregularities and hiccups witnessed during the last polls.

“What, then, are lawmakers amending in the 2022 Electoral Act if the very clause required to improve transparency and credibility in our electoral process is deliberately rejected?

“Only those bent on rigging the process would scorn reforms aimed at strengthening electoral integrity.

“What makes the present lawmakers think they would always be beneficiaries of a flawed system? Those who refuse to do the right thing today for narrow partisan interests may ultimately become victims of their own actions tomorrow. A defective process spares no one.

“That said, we will continue to urge Nigerians not to waver in the face of setbacks such as this. With sustained vigilance and collective resolve, the outcome of the 2027 elections can still reflect the true will of the Nigerian people.

“Through determination, unity, and alertness at the polls, the people can still defend their mandate and our democracy.”

Speaking in a similar vein, the founding National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Chekwas Okorie, described the Senate action as an affront on the sensibilities of Nigerians.

He wondered why the National Assembly chose to live “in the Stone Age” while the rest of the world is making steady progress towards technology and modernization.

Okorie said: “I’m not surprised but disappointed that the Senate has decided to be a cog in the wheel of Nigeria’s democratic progress.

“This National Assembly has since its inauguration in 2023 left no one in doubt that it swore an oath to be a rubber stamp of the current executive.

“While they are at it, they must bear in mind that Nigeria is better than all of us, it is bigger than the ruling party and every trick it is plotting to use to deny Nigerians the right to freely elect their leaders come 2027.

“This is a call for all Nigerians to be vigilant because vigilance is the eternal price we must pay to protect our democratic rights.

“We will mobilize, organise and ensure that the sanctity of our votes is protected from the polling booths to the units, wards up till the collation centre. No glitch will be allowed to deny Nigerians the right results.”