Senate’s Rejection of Mandatory Electronic Transmission: A Deliberate Step Toward Electoral Rigging And Erosion Of Democracy

By Auta Prince Natty

Nigeria has taken a profoundly troubling step backward.

On February 4, 2026, the Senate passed the Electoral Act 2022 (Repeal and Reenactment) Amendment Bill through third reading but crucially rejected the proposed amendment to Clause 60, Subsection 3. This clause would have made real-time electronic transmission of polling unit results to the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal mandatory, requiring presiding officers to upload results immediately after signing Form EC8A, with party agents countersigning.

Instead, the Senate retained the existing vague language: results shall be “transferred… in a manner as prescribed by the Commission.” This discretion, already exploited in past elections, leaves the door wide open for manipulation during manual collation and movement, precisely the weakest link that has undermined Nigerian elections for decades.

Ballots are cast peacefully at polling units, often with high voter turnout and relative calm. Yet, the final announced results frequently diverge dramatically due to alterations at collation centers. Real-time electronic transmission locks in the voters’ will at the source, making tampering visible, traceable, and far more difficult. Rejecting this mandatory safeguard is not a neutral technical choice, it is a calculated move that preserves opportunities for rigging ahead of 2027.

Defenders, including Senate President Godswill Akpabio, insist the Senate “did not reject electronic transmission” but merely retained the 2022 provision (used in the 2023 elections). This is disingenuous semantics. The rejected amendment sought to remove INEC’s discretion and enforce real-time upload by law, eliminating the ambiguity that enables selective compliance, political pressure, and quiet interference. Laws must provide certainty, not preserve loopholes for abuse.

This decision directly threatens public trust. Nigerians have demanded greater transparency for years. Technology has proven its value: the IReV portal reduced some disputes in past cycles by allowing public verification. Denying mandatory transmission signals that those in power prefer a system open to influence over one secured by verifiable digital processes.

At a moment when faith in democratic institutions is already fragile, this action deepens cynicism and risks accelerating voter apathy or worse.

Rigging is not a future hypothetical; the groundwork is being laid now. By blocking this critical reform, the Senate has signaled comfort with opacity over accountability.

All well-meaning Nigerians must rise immediately:

• Civil society organizations (Yiaga Africa, CDD West Africa, Enough is Enough Nigeria, Transition Monitoring Group, and others) should launch sustained campaigns, petitions, litigation where possible, and mass mobilization.
• The media (independent outlets, investigative journalists, and broadcasters) must expose this betrayal relentlessly, fact-check official denials, and keep the spotlight on individual senators who voted against transparency.
• Professional bodies, youth movements, labor unions (NLC, TUC), religious leaders, women’s groups, and the diaspora community must speak out loudly and organize.
• Ordinary citizens should use social media, community forums, protests, and voter education to demand accountability.

This Senate, especially those who opposed mandatory transmission has clearly positioned itself as an enemy of genuine democratic integrity. Come 2027, Nigerians must remember their names, their votes, and their records. None who enabled this weakening of electoral safeguards deserve reelection. A legislature willing to undermine verifiable transparency today is capable of far worse tomorrow.

Democracy cannot thrive on vague promises or discretionary powers, it survives on transparent, verifiable processes that the people can see, trust, and defend. The fight for credible elections has become more urgent than ever. Reject this retrograde decision, hold the enablers accountable at the ballot box, and protect Nigeria’s democratic future before it is irreparably damaged.