…Backs Manual Results if IREV Fails
On Tuesday, the 10th Senate approved the amendments to the Electoral Act that mandate electronic transmission of polling unit results to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s Result Viewing Portal (IREV).
In like mind, the Upper Chamber of the National Assembly also approved manual results to prevail where electronic upload is unsuccessful.
The Senate gave this approval during plenary proceedings presided over by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
Under the amended Section 60 of the Act, presiding officers are required to electronically transmit results after the conclusion of voting.
However, the revised law introduces a provision stating that manually completed result sheets—Form EC8A—will be used for collation and declaration if electronic transmission fails due to network or communication challenges.
While putting the amendment to a vote, Akpabio urged senators who opposed the proposal to formally challenge it through a counter motion.
“It’s very simple. If you disagree with him, move your counter motion. So, if you agree with him, you agree with me when I put the votes,” Akpabio said.
According to him, the motion before the chamber sought to reverse an earlier Senate resolution on Section 60(3) of the Electoral Act.
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“When I ask for the votes, when I ask for your consent, let me read the motion. His earlier motion, which passed in our last sitting, he has sought to rescind that. That is in respect of Section 60, Subsection 3. And this is what he said,” the Senate President stated.
Reading the amended clause, Akpabio said presiding officers must electronically transmit results to IREV after completing and endorsing Form EC8A.
“That the presiding officer shall electronically transmit the results from each polling unit to the IREV portal. And such transmission shall be done after the prescribed Form EC8A has been signed and stamped by the presiding officer and/or countersigned by the candidates or polling agents where available at the polling units, because sometimes you don’t see any polling agent,” he said.
He added that the amendment anticipates situations where electronic transmission may not be feasible.
“Provided that if the electronic transmission of the results fails as a result of communication failure — in other words, maybe network or otherwise — and it becomes impossible to transmit the results electronically in Form EC8A signed and stamped by the presiding officer and/or countersigned by the candidates or polling agents where available at the polling units, the Form EC8A shall in such a case be the primary source of collation and declaration of results,” Akpabio explained.
The amendment has drawn criticism from civil society organisations and opposition figures, who argue that prioritising manual results in cases of failed electronic transmission could weaken electoral transparency and create opportunities for manipulation, particularly in areas with poor network coverage.
Akpabio also announced the formation of a 12-member Senate committee to harmonise differences between the Senate and the House of Representatives on the electoral amendment bills.
He said the Senate increased its representation on the conference committee from nine to 12 members to match the House, with the aim of fast-tracking the process.
“We have raised our numbers from nine to twelve to match the figures from our colleagues in the House of Reps. We expect everything to be done in the next few days or in a week. The President is expected to sign this into law in February,” Akpabio said.
The development comes amid growing public outrage and street protests, with critics accusing the National Assembly of weakening electoral safeguards.
On Monday, former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, joined protesters at the National Assembly under the banner of #OccupyNASS, organised by the National Opposition Movement.
Sowore warned security agencies against attacking peaceful demonstrators and accused political leaders of deliberately shaping electoral laws to enable manipulation.
“This is an exposition that already existed. It is not new. That is why it is a surprise to everyone that this provision was yanked away from the Electoral Act that Akpabio and his friends are trying to put in place,” Sowore said.
