The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has strongly criticized the Nigerian Senate for rejecting a proposed amendment that would have made the electronic transmission of election results from polling units mandatory, describing the decision as a major setback for electoral integrity and democratic consolidation in Nigeria.
In a statement issued following the Senate’s passage of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, the PDP emphasized that Nigerians across all 109 senatorial districts have consistently demanded electoral sanctity, which it said is best guaranteed through real-time electronic transmission of results directly from polling units to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) IReV portal.
The party argued that the current widespread practice of result manipulation—either before results reach collation centres or during collation—would have been eliminated by compulsory electronic transmission.
“We are all witnesses to the widespread practice of altering results before it gets to the collation centre or at the collation centre. This electronic transmission would have brought an end to this ignoble practice that has been deployed by politicians to win elections against the wishes of the people expressed through the ballot,” the PDP stated.
The opposition party described the Senate’s decision to retain the discretionary provision in the Electoral Act 2022 (which allows transmission “in a manner as prescribed by the Commission”) as a deliberate refusal to legislate for credible elections.
“This rejection is a clear indication that the National Assembly is not willing or ready to legislate for electoral sanctity and democratic consolidation. This is indeed a sad day for electoral democracy,” the statement read.
The PDP called on the National Assembly to immediately reverse its position and pass the amendment approving mandatory electronic transmission of results, describing it as the “minimum amendment” needed to restore public confidence in the electoral process.
“This is the minimum amendment that can increase faith in the electoral process, without which the apathy will be worse than the last general election, which is greatly unhelpful to democracy,” the party warned.
The PDP’s reaction comes amid growing concerns from civil society groups, election observers, and ordinary Nigerians that the failure to entrench compulsory electronic transmission could undermine trust in future elections, including the 2027 general polls.
The Senate, through President Godswill Akpabio, had earlier clarified that electronic transmission was not rejected outright but retained in its existing discretionary form as used in the 2023 elections. Critics, however, maintain that making it mandatory is essential to prevent manipulation and enhance transparency.
