Protests Mount Over Senate’s Rejection Of Mandatory E-Transmission Of Results

ABUJA – Protests have continued to grow over the Senate’s rejection of the mandatory electronic transfer of election results.

Even though the Red Chamber has convened an emergency sitting for Tuesday, many believe it is unrelated to the controversy surrounding the Electoral Amendment Bill.

Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, on Monday joined hundreds of protesters at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja to oppose the Senate’s decision to remove the phrase “real-time” from provisions on electronic transmission of election results in the Electoral Act Amendment Bill.

The protest, tagged “Occupy the National Assembly,” was organised by members of the Obidient Movement alongside pro-democracy activists, who accused lawmakers of attempting to weaken electoral transparency ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The agitation follows the Senate’s passage last week of the Electoral Act 2022 (Repeal and Re-enactment) Amendment Bill, 2026.

A key controversy in the amended legislation is the deletion of the word “real-time” from sections relating to the electronic transmission of results, a move critics argue could open the door to manipulation.

Although the Senate has issued several clarifications, insisting that it did not reject electronic transmission of results, protesters maintained that the absence of the phrase “real-time electronic transmission” leaves room for abuse and post-election interference.

Chanting solidarity songs and displaying placards bearing messages such as “Our votes must count,” “No to electoral robbery,” and “Protect democracy now,” the demonstrators marched from the Federal Secretariat towards the National Assembly.

They were, however, prevented from entering the complex by heavily armed security operatives drawn from the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigerian Army, and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.

The security agencies barricaded the main entrance, compelling the protesters to stage their demonstration outside the gates.

Addressing journalists at the protest ground, Obi decried what he described as the gradual erosion of democratic gains in the country, warning that credible elections remain critical to national stability and development.

“We must dismantle this criminality and prove that we are now a nation that shows light in Africa,” Obi said.

His presence at the protest further energised the crowd, many of whom regard him as a symbol of the youth-led political movement that challenged Nigeria’s traditional political structure during the 2023 general elections.

Also speaking, the National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement Worldwide, Dr Yunusa Tanko, said the protests would continue until the National Assembly explicitly reinstates real-time electronic transmission of results in the amended law.

“If there is no electronic transmission of results, there will be no election. Our elections must be credible,” Tanko declared.

He argued that previous elections were often compromised by manual interference during result collation, noting that electronic transmission was introduced as part of reforms following the 2011 and 2015 elections to curb such practices.

Nigeria’s push for electoral reforms gained momentum after the widely criticised 2007 general elections. Subsequent innovations, including the introduction of card readers in 2015 and the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) in 2022, were praised as steps towards transparency, despite ongoing implementation challenges.

The provision for electronic transmission of results was also a major demand of civil society organisations during deliberations on the 2022 Electoral Act, with advocates arguing that it would reduce human interference and rebuild public trust in the electoral process.

Popular activist Randy Peters, who also addressed the protesters, accused the political class of betraying democratic ideals and vowed that demonstrations would continue until their demands are met.

“Tomorrow, we will be back here until the Senate does the right thing. The June 12 struggle was about free and fair elections,” he said.

Invoking the legacy of the June 12, 1993 election, widely regarded as Nigeria’s freest and fairest, Peters questioned why elected officials would resist reforms designed to guarantee credible polls.

“In 2027, our votes must count. That is the most important thing. Tomorrow, they will meet us here again,” he added.