The Senate has rejected a proposed amendment seeking to make the electronic transmission of election results compulsory in Nigeria’s electoral process.
The decision followed consideration of an amendment to Clause 60(3) of the Electoral Amendment Bill during plenary on Wednesday. The proposal would have required presiding officers of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to electronically upload polling unit results to the INEC Result Viewing (IREV) portal in real time after completing and endorsing Form EC8A.
Lawmakers, however, voted to retain the existing provision of the Electoral Act, which allows INEC to determine the method of transmitting election results. The current law states 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.”
The rejection means that electronic transmission of results will remain at INEC’s discretion rather than being a statutory requirement.
Supporters of the amendment had argued that mandatory electronic transmission would enhance transparency and reduce disputes, while opponents maintained that operational flexibility was necessary given infrastructural and logistical challenges in some parts of the country.
The Senate’s decision preserves the status quo as deliberations continue on other provisions of the Electoral Amendment Bill.
