The Senate has rejected a proposed amendment to the Electoral Act that sought to make the electronic transmission of election results mandatory, opting instead to retain the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) discretionary powers on the mode of results transmission.
The decision followed deliberations on Clause 60, Subsection 3, of the Electoral Amendment Bill during plenary, where lawmakers declined to alter the existing provision of the law.
The proposed amendment aimed to compel INEC presiding officers to electronically transmit polling unit results in real time to the commission’s Result Viewing Portal (IREV) after the completion of voting.
Under the proposal, results were to be entered on the prescribed Form EC8A, duly signed and stamped by the presiding officer and countersigned by party agents, before being transmitted electronically to the IREV platform to enhance transparency and speed up collation.
However, senators voted to retain the current wording of the Electoral Act, which grants INEC the authority to determine the method of results transmission.
The existing law provides that “the presiding officer shall transfer the results, including the total number of accredited voters and the results of the ballot, in a manner as prescribed by the Commission.”
By rejecting the amendment, the Senate effectively preserved INEC’s latitude to decide whether election results are transmitted electronically, manually, or through any other method it deems appropriate, rather than making electronic upload to the IREV portal a statutory obligation.
The issue of electronic transmission of election results has remained a contentious subject in Nigeria’s electoral reform debates, particularly since the 2023 general elections, where the failure of real-time uploads to the IREV portal generated widespread public criticism and legal disputes.
The IREV platform was introduced by INEC to enhance transparency by allowing citizens, political parties, and observers to view polling unit results as they are uploaded.
However, technical glitches, logistical challenges, and inconsistent uploads during past elections raised concerns over the reliability of the system.
Previous attempts by lawmakers and civil society groups to mandate electronic transmission have been resisted by some stakeholders, who argue that poor network coverage, especially in rural areas, could disenfranchise voters or disrupt the electoral process.
INEC, on its part, has consistently maintained that while it supports the use of technology, it requires operational flexibility to determine the most effective and secure method of results transmission based on prevailing conditions.
The Senate’s decision to retain INEC’s discretion reflects ongoing divisions within the legislature over how far technology should be entrenched in Nigeria’s electoral framework, as preparations gradually begin for future elections.
