Senate President Godswill Akpabio has clarified that the Senate did not reject electronic transmission of election results, but simply retained the provision as it appears in the Electoral Act 2022.
The statement addresses public outcry after the Senate, on February 4, rejected a proposal to make real-time electronic transmission of results mandatory while considering the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2026.
During deliberations, the upper chamber kept the existing clause from the 2022 law, which allows INEC to transmit results electronically but does not require real-time transmission.
Manual collation remains legally valid, and immediate electronic upload is not compulsory.
The rejected amendment would have forced real-time transmission directly to INEC’s Result Viewing Portal (IReV), sparking renewed criticism over electoral transparency and trust.
Speaking at the unveiling of the book The Burden of Legislators in Nigeria by former Senator Effiong Bob in Abuja, Akpabio said: “I must state clearly, without ambiguity, that the Senate has not removed any means of transmission.”
He explained that the Senate removed only the phrase “real time” to avoid legal risks from network failures, technical issues, or security challenges that could prevent instant uploads.
Such a strict requirement, he noted, might lead to unnecessary court cases or even invalidate credible results in areas with poor connectivity or insecurity.
Akpabio stressed that the decision gives INEC practical flexibility to choose the most appropriate transmission method based on actual election-day conditions, while still permitting electronic transmission wherever feasible.
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