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• Inclusion of manual back up needless, could compromise transparency – Stakeholders
By Omoniyi Salaudeen
The 2027 Nigerian election is shaping up to be a highly competitive contest.
On Friday, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) released the election timetable, fixing February 20, 2027 as the date to conduct the presidential and National Assembly elections, as well as March 6, 2027 for governorship and State Assembly elections.
Even at that, the on-going controversy surrounding the Senate’s rejection of real-time electronic transmission of election results has highlighted the political class’s sensitivity to potential electoral manipulation. What ordinarily should have been a routine National Assembly exercise has sparked widespread public outcry and protests. Stakeholders from across party lines still insist that electronic transmission be made mandatory, citing concerns over transparency. Under pressure, the Senate has passed a revised version allowing both electronic and manual transmission of results to the IRev portal.
The Senate had initially rejected a proposal requiring real-time electronic transmission of results, sparking controversy and public outcry. However, after widespread protests and pressure from civil society groups, the lawmakers reversed the decision, mandating electronic transmission with a manual backup for areas with poor network coverage.
The amended Electoral Act now requires presiding officers to electronically transmit results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) after signing and stamping Form EC8A. According to them, this move aims to enhance transparency and credibility in the 2027 elections.
To many analysts, the decision to mandate electronic transmission of election results, with a manual backup, has several implications for the country’s electoral process. Apart from increased transparency, they argue, electronic transmission can reduce result manipulation and enhance credibility. Electronic results can also minimize errors and disputes. However, the inclusion of manual backup provision raises fresh anger among stakeholders with many expressing worries that it could compromise transparency through manipulation. Discrepancies between electronic and manual results, they say, could lead to confusion.
While the Senate’s decision is seen by some as a step toward improving Nigeria’s electoral process, effective implementation remains crucial. The general concern is infrastructure and logistics issues, which INEC needs to address for effective implementation.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, a key player in the new emerging coalition forces, was quick to express concerns over the amended Electoral Act, fearing it may allow for manipulation of the electoral process. He argues that the hybrid system, which combines electronic and manual transmission of results, could compromise the integrity of elections and create confusion. Instead, Atiku advocates a fully electronic transmission system, citing the need for transparency and credibility in the electoral process. His stance is supported by other opposition parties, who argue that the amended Act undermines efforts to strengthen electoral reforms.
The Senate’s decision to reject real-time electronic transmission of results has sparked fresh anger among many, with critics arguing it preserves a system vulnerable to manipulation.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had initially proposed electronic transmission, but the Senate retained manual collation as a backup option. Atiku urges opposition parties to unite and push for a fully electronic system, emphasising that it’s a democratic safeguard, not a partisan demand.
Rising public indignation
Although a joint committee of the Senate and House of Representatives set to harmonise their position has yet to submit its final report, there has been rising indignation among concerned stakeholders. The pioneer National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Chekwas Okorie, berated the Senate for the refusal to make IRev a legal platform that could be used to make a case by any aggrieved person at the Supreme Court.
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Speaking with Sunday Sun in a telephone interview, he said: “Combining both electronic and manual transmission is unacceptable. Given what the Senate passed, I feel thoroughly disappointed. The reason for what they passed in untenable. It’s like taking Nigerians for a ride. It is almost like ascribing to themselves superior knowledge to the one that has been expressed through public hearings.
“I am also not happy that they did not make IRev a legal platform that can be used to make a case by any aggrieved person at the Supreme Court. This creates room for election manipulation. I would have loved to see a situation where transmission is done from polling units to the IRev where people can view results so that it can be used in courts should the need arise. They deliberately allowed things to remain the way they were in 2023 elections.
“And I want to leave a note of caution here. It is not a matter of who is smarter than the other. It is not about the National Assembly versus the people or the APC versus the people. What is important is the stability and survival of Nigeria as a country. Nigerians are very restive at this time. Many people still believe 2023 election results were manipulated and court gave a stamp to that manipulation, especially the Supreme Court. Many people are sensitive to the fact that certain persons are dominating judiciary and INEC itself. So, when you look at various levels that should inspire confidence, INEC is almost under the executive arm. The National Assembly is already termed as a rubberstamp and they have done nothing to prove that conception wrong. We know those who are controlling the judiciary from the Federal High Court level to the Supreme Court. When these three arms of government are practically under the influence of one person and they cannot give Nigerians a reliable legal framework to expect a credible election, you are telling them to resort to self-help. The issue of imposition may not save this country from an impending anarchy.
“However, I still believe there is a window for an amendment because the joint committee of the Senate and the House of Representatives is yet to submit the final resolution of the matter.”
A former Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party in Lagos, Tunji Shelle, who is now a member of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), could also not hold back his anger while discussing electronic transmission of election results with Sunday Sun. He said: “Everybody has lost confidence in the National Assembly. While the House of Reps has done a good job with an amendment that is acceptable to majority of Nigerians, the Senate is playing pranks with its own version. They bowed to pressure, no doubt, by allowing electronic transmission of results but they included a clause which is giving everybody concern. The inclusion of manual transmission is subject to different interpretations when people go to court to challenge the outcome of elections. They have affirmed that anything written on form EC8A is authentic.
“If there is discrepancy between electronic and manual transmission, the court may decide to take side with the party they are interested in. This is the fear of the populace. Of course, there could be problems in transmission but it shouldn’t be more than two per cent, which will be insignificant. But people can escalate it and make the public to doubt the outcome of elections at the end of the day. It has happened before; we don’t want it to happen again.
“INEC too cannot be trusted with the handling of results. The INEC chairman cannot see everywhere and one cannot vouch for his representatives. They can easily be compromised, leading to fraudulent results. If there will be failure of transmission, it can’t be more than two per cent of the entire results of the elections. They did election in Anambra State; by 6 pm all the results had already come in. That is the kind of thing we want. I believe the Senate and the House of Representatives still have another opportunity to make amends.”
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ogun State, Senator Gbenga Obadara, who though harped on the importance of electronic transmission of result real-time, insisted that there is nothing wrong with manual transmission. He dismissed the fear being expressed as imaginary and unfounded. “Electronic transmission is for genuineness of election results. It is difficult to tamper with results transmitted real-time from polling units to IRev. While there is nothing wrong with manual transmission, the first line of action should be electronic transmission. That way, it gives everybody confidence that what they voted is what is being counted. The concern that people are raising about electronic and manual transmission is imaginary and unfunded. Parties should prevail on their agents to take electronic transmission as the first line of action,” he argued.
Infrastructure deficiencies
Beyond emotions and sentiments, infrastructure deficiency, including network failure remains part of critical logistic challenges that INEC has to grapple with as the nation yearns for free and credible elections. While electronic transmission is desirable for speed and transparency, the reality on the ground often looks like a nightmare of dead zones and hardware glitches. It is a classic case of high-tech aspirations meeting low-tech infrastructure. The transition from physical ballot boxes to digital data packets isn’t just about software; it’s about the physical environment.
In many regions, network coverage is concentrated in urban hubs. Once you hit rural or mountainous terrain, signal strength drops significantly. If a polling unit is in a blind spot, officials often have to travel miles just to find a signal to transmit, which defeats the purpose of instant results and creates windows for security risks. Delayed transmission leads to public anxiety and accusations of result doctoring during the transit time.
However, electronic transmission requires devices (scanners, tablets, or specialized e-transmission kits) that need to stay powered for 12–24 hours. In areas with unstable power grids, relying on batteries is a gamble. If a device dies mid-transmission, or if thermal printers fail due to heat/dust, the digital chain of custody is broken.
When thousands of polling units attempt to upload high-resolution images of result sheets simultaneously, the central servers can crash or slow to a crawl.
These are some of the concerns that informed the Senate’s inclusion of manual transmission. However, Okorie dismissed the claim with a wave of the hand. “The Senate is being wise by half. You don’t need to be an ICT expert to know that if you have poor network, immediately you get to where there is improved network, results will be transmitted to the IRev. That will show you the dishonesty of people we put in office. They should let us know the number of polling units where there is no network, we can repeat elections there,” he insisted.
Shelle shared the same sentiment, arguing that network failure should not be over hyped. “What we are advocating is that electronic transmission of results should be done real-time. It is possible result doesn’t go to the IRev directly but it will eventually drop. Before you get to collation centre, the result would have dropped. Some people may capitalise on manual transmission to alter results between the point of collection and the collation centre and then there will be controversy. That is why Nigerians are afraid of manual transmission. This is the fear of the populace. Even if there is no network, by the time you get to where network is available, it will definitely drop in the IRev,” Shelle added.
