Electoral Act: Akpabio Summons Emergency Sitting, Notable Nigerians Kick, NLC Warns

Chuks Okocha, Onyebuchi Ezigbo, Sunday Aborisade and Folalumi Alaran in Abuja 

Following the backlash that trailed the recent amendment to the Electoral Act, Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has summoned an emergency session for tomorrow, Tuesday, February 10, in a move to fast-track legislative action on the controversial Electoral Act Amendments Bill.

That was as prominent Nigerians kicked against Senate’s alleged rejection of electronic transmission of results. They included former Senate President, David Mark; Mr. Femi Falana, SAN; Dr Oby Ezekwesili; Professor Pat Utomi; Comrade Ayuba Wabba; Dr Usman Bugaje; Dr Bilikisu Magoro; Ambassador Nkoyo Toyo; Comrade Shehu Sanni; Comrade Ene Obi; and Olawale Okunniyi.

Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) also urged Senate to ensure that the amended Electoral Act provided unambiguous mandate for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to electronically transmit and collate results from polling units in real-time. 

A statement yesterday by Clerk of the Senate, Emmanuel Odo, directed all senators to reconvene for the extraordinary sitting scheduled to commence at noon.

While the official notice did not state the reason for the sudden recall, THISDAY learnt that the emergency plenary was aimed at approving the Votes and Proceedings of Senate’s last sitting.

It is an essential procedural step to allow the conference committee on Electoral Act amendments to commence work.

A ranking senator, who was also a principal officer, confirmed the development, saying lawmakers have already received a circular from the presiding officer.

The senator, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said, “We have been formally asked to reconvene on Tuesday to approve the Votes and Proceedings of our last legislative sitting.

“This is necessary to clear the way for the conference committee to begin work on the Electoral Act Amendments Bill.”

The senator further hinted that the emergency session might begin behind closed doors, given the rising political tension surrounding provisions on the electronic transmission of election results.

“It is most likely that there will be an executive session before the main business of the day. The issue of electronic transmission of results has already generated serious tension within and outside the National Assembly,” he added.

The sudden recall came amid intense public scrutiny and mounting criticism from opposition parties, civil society groups and election observers, who had accused the National Assembly of attempting to dilute key reforms ahead of the 2027 general election.

Senate and House of Representatives are currently on a two-week recess, during which lawmakers are expected to engage ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) on the implementation of the 2026 budget.

However, the decision to interrupt the recess underscores the urgency the upper chamber’s leadership attaches to resolving outstanding legislative issues on the Electoral Act, which is the legislation that will shape the conduct, credibility and integrity of future elections in Nigeria.

Political watchers say Tuesday’s emergency sitting could prove pivotal, as it may determine the final direction of electoral reforms and set the tone for the next phase of engagement between the National Assembly, the executive and the Nigerian electorate, especially on the issue of electronic transmission of election results.

Mark, Bugaje, Utomi, Falana, Wabba, Ezekwesili, Magori and Sanni, Others Kick

Prominent Nigerians, yesterday, kicked against Senate’s alleged rejection of electronic transmission of results ahead of the 2027 general poll.

Former Senate President and National Chairman of African Democratic Congress (ADC), Senator David Mark, insisted that ADC’s position was clear and non-negotiable on the matter.

The exchange occurred at the public presentation of “The Burden of Legislators in Nigeria”, held at the NAF Conference Centre, Abuja, where Mark chaired the occasion.

During his address, Akpabio urged ADC and other critics of the amendment process not to be in a hurry, stressing that Senate has yet to conclude work on the Electoral Act amendment.

He stated that calls for real-time electronic transmission of election results failed to take into account Nigeria’s infrastructure challenges, citing lack of electricity and internet access in many rural communities.

According to him, allowing such a provision in the law can negatively affect electoral outcomes.

Responding, Mark said the senate president could not speak on behalf of ADC, adding that the party’s demand—and that of many Nigerians—is straightforward.

Mark said there was no need for lengthy explanations or justifications, and stressed that all ADC asked for was for the National Assembly to pass the amendment with provisions for real-time transmission of results, and allow the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to determine its feasibility.

“The National Assembly should pass the law and let INEC complain if there is a problem,” Mark said, stating that neither INEC nor Nigerians are complaining about real-time transmission. He said, rather, the commission and Nigerians, generally, were demanding greater transparency and credibility in elections.

He stated that raising infrastructure excuses at the law-making stage only weakened public confidence in the reform process, insisting that electoral laws should be designed to protect the integrity of the vote, not to pre-emptively limit it.

Al newly launched coalition of groups of leading Political Activists in Nigeria, Movement for Credible Elections (MCE), also rejected the decision by the National Assembly through the senate to remove and refuse the mandatory electronic transmission of election results in the Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2026. 

The group, convened by eminent activists, including Comrade Ayuba Wabba, Dr Usman Bugaje, Barrister Femi Falana, SAN, Dr Oby Ezekwesili, Professor Pat Utomi, Dr Bilikisu Magoro, Amb Nkoyo Toyo, Comrade Shehu Sanni, Comrade Ene Obi, and Olawale Okunniyi, among others, resolved not to be beholden to any party or politician. They said MCE belonged to Nigerian citizens whose votes had been rigged and stolen from one election to the other since 1999.

The group stated, ”By this medium, we are calling on our teaming partners and allies not to accept any attempt to roll back the planned Occupy NASS mass protest but to mobilise and proceed peacefully on a mass civic action to defend the popular yearnings of Nigerians in resisting any attempt to return Nigeria to the dark days of manual manipulation and backroom results arising from the distortions occasioned by glitches and interferences with the will of the electorate.”

They said the action of the lawmakers was a direct assault by the National Assembly on the right of Nigerians to freely choose their leaders. 

By rejecting the mandatory transmission of election results from the polling units and other critical clauses, the National Assembly, the group said, had chosen opacity over transparency, manipulation over credibility, and elite conspiracy over the sovereign will of the people. 

In a statement signed by Comrade James Ezema, the group said, ”This is not lawmaking—it is deliberate democratic sabotage against the aspiration of the people of our country as Mandatory electronic transmission of results is not controversial. 

“It is a minimum safeguard against result tampering, ballot rewriting, and post-election fraud. Any legislature that blocks it is openly defending a system that thrives on electoral corruption, stolen mandates and manufactured elections.”

MCE said it wished to make it clear that there was no acceptable justification for rejecting mandatory transmission except for the fear of the genuine votes and mandate of the electorate.

The group stated, ”The status quo where results are vulnerable to manipulation between polling units and collation centres will remain and be exploited in 2027.

”If we fail to provide the transparency desired by Nigerians, apathy will grow and this in turn will undermine public confidence in elections with citizen choosing to express their votes in other ways.

”Not only has the failure of transparent elections outcomes rewarded impunity and electoral fraud, it has enabled the courts to become the tool of mandate purchase by the highest bidders and appendage of the executive, not independently working to entrench the rule of law.”

It said, ”Whereas elite state capture has become the order of the day in Nigeria, where impunity and oppression reigns, this anti-democratic action of the lawmakers show an unwillingness to submit themselves to transparent competition in desperate bid to be beneficiaries of the corrupt systems enthroned since 1999.

”This decision confirms what Nigerians already know that the Nigerian political class are afraid of technological transparency because it exposes their shady and corrupt dealings during elections ”

The group called for immediate reinstatement and passage of the mandatory electronic transmission of results in the Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2026.

It stated, ”Publicly account for those members who opposed this clause, so they do not use the cover of the senate or house of representatives to avoid public scrutiny and explanation of their positions to Nigerians.

”Ensure that they are made to account for the use of legislative powers as a system they have benefited from in the last 26 years since Nigeria became a democratic state.”

Equally, yesterday, ADC Diaspora Roundtable accused Senate of ignoring the will of Nigerians by refusing to make electronic transmission of election results mandatory.

In a statement made in Abuja, the diaspora-based group faulted the red chamber’s decision to delete the phrase “real-time” from provisions relating to electronic transmission of results.

The group warned that the move undermined public confidence in the electoral process ahead of the 2027 general election.

The statement, signed by Yusuf Midala for the ADC Diaspora Roundtable, described electronic transmission of results as “a basic safeguard against manipulation”.

The statement said weakening the provision risked reopening old wounds associated with disputed elections, particularly the controversies that followed the 2023 polls.

Part of the statement read, “The refusal to make electronic transmission mandatory directly contradicts the clear demand of Nigerians for transparency and credibility in elections. This decision sends a troubling signal that the lessons of 2023 have not been fully learnt.”

Youth-led Electoral Reform Project (YERP-Naija) Consortium equally expressed deep disappointment over the matter.

In a statement, YERP-Naija Consortium, represented by Executive Director, Kimpact Development Initiative and YERP_Naija National Coordinator, Bukola Idowu, described Senate’s action as a setback to public confidence in electoral integrity.

The group stated that Senate’s decision to retain the existing framework—allowing INEC to determine the mode of result transmission administratively—undermined statutory clarity and weakens accountability.

According to the statement, making electronic transmission mandatory would have provided a clear and enforceable legal safeguard to strengthen transparency and rebuild trust, particularly among Nigeria’s young voters, who see technology as key to restoring credibility in the system.

Despite the setback, YERP-Naija emphasised that the forthcoming harmonisation process between Senate and House of Representatives presented an opportunity for reconsideration. 

The consortium urged the conference committee to reconcile differences and adopt reforms that aligned with citizens’ expectations and youth demands ahead of the 2027 general election.

NLC Threatens Mass Action 

Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) urged Senate to ensure that the amended Electoral Act provided unambiguous mandate for INEC to electronically transmit and collate results from polling units in real-time. 

NLC said the amended Act must ensure clarity in the mandate to INEC with regard to electronic transmission of election results, adding that the path to the 2027 elections must be built on certainty, not confusion.

In a statement by NLC President, Joe Ajaero, the labour movement warned that failure to add electronic transmission real-time would lead to mass action before, during and after the election or total boycott of the election. 

The statement said, “NLC expresses deep concern over the confusion and contradictory narratives emerging from the Senate regarding the amendment to the 2022 Electoral Act, particularly on electronic transmission of results. This lack of clarity undermines public trust and is deeply troubling for our democracy.

“We call on the Senate to restore legislative credibility by ensuring its processes are transparent and its outcomes clear. 

“The amended Act must provide an unambiguous mandate for INEC to electronically transmit and collate results from polling units in real-time. The path to the 2027 elections must be built on certainty, not confusion.”

NLC said Nigerians deserved a transparent electoral process where their votes would not only count but be seen to count.

It stated, “We urge the Senate to provide an immediate, official, and unambiguous account of its proceedings and final decisions.

“Public records suggest the proposed amendment to mandate INEC to transmit results electronically in real-time was not adopted, with the existing discretionary provision retained. 

“This has generated nationwide apprehension, and subsequent explanations have only added to the confusion. At a critical juncture following the 2023 elections, such legislative ambiguity risks institutionalising doubt at the heart of our electoral integrity and echoes past controversies that have caused national distress.

“Therefore, the NLC demands immediate clarity and transparency. The Senate must issue a definitive statement on the exact provisions passed, clarifying the final wording and rationale.”