Former Minister of Education Oby Ezekwesili has cautioned Nigerian senators over ambiguities in the amended Electoral Act and said Nigerians are demanding the real-time electronic upload of election results from polling units, during an interview on ARISE News in Abuja on Friday.
The comments came as the Nigerian Senate reviews the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2026, which includes provisions governing how election results are transmitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) results viewing portal (IReV).
Debate has focused on whether the law should mandate real-time electronic upload of results directly from polling units.
In its plenary session on February 4, 2026, the Senate voted against a proposal to make such real-time electronic transmission mandatory, instead retaining a clause from the 2022 Electoral Act that allows results to be transferred in a manner “as prescribed by the Commission.”
Ezekwesili said Nigerians expressed widespread frustration with the handling of election result transmission in past elections, particularly in 2023, when promises made by INEC to young voters about online transmission were not fulfilled.
She said this failure undermined public trust and led to judicial interpretations that the law did not mandate upload of results from every polling unit.
She argued that the amendment process should have seized the opportunity to close perceived loopholes and strengthen confidence in Nigeria’s democracy, rather than leaving discretion with the electoral body.
Ezekwesili urged lawmakers to revisit the issue by cancelling their emergency vacation and adopting clear language in the Electoral Act that would require presiding officers to electronically transmit results after forms are signed and stamped at each polling unit.
Ezekwesili said: “I think that the fundamental issue is that the Senate retained the INEC 2022 Act Section 60, subsection 5, which actually became infamous for the loophole that it provided for the INEC to not accord Nigerians the basis to trust it anymore.”
She also stated: “That’s why I said to them, stop playing with fire. It’s almost as if the political class, especially as exemplified by the Senate, just wakes up every morning and says, what shall we do today to upset Nigerians?”
Ezekwesili’s remarks reflect a broader national debate over the role of technology in ensuring transparency, credibility and public confidence in Nigeria’s electoral process.
Civil society groups and some political actors have pushed for mandatory real-time electronic result transmission as part of electoral reforms ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The Senate’s decision to retain discretionary provisions rather than mandate real-time uploads has sparked reactions from political parties and leaders who say it weakens efforts to improve the integrity of election outcomes.
