The House of Representatives on Tuesday reversed aspects of the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill passed in December, amending Section 60(3) to allow both electronic and manual transmission of election results.
Under the earlier provision, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was required to electronically transmit polling unit results to its Result Viewing Portal (IREV) in real time alongside physical collation.
The revised clause now states that the presiding officer shall electronically transmit results from each polling unit to the IREV portal only after Form EC8A has been duly signed and stamped by the presiding officer and countersigned by candidates or polling agents where available.
It further provides that where electronic transmission fails due to communication challenges, the signed Form EC8A will serve as the primary document for collation and declaration of results.
Following the adoption of the amendment, opposition lawmakers staged a walkout from the chamber in protest.
The lawmakers, led by Minority Leader Kingsley Chinda, later addressed journalists at the House of Representatives Media Centre, rejecting the new provision and describing it as anti-people.
The development signals renewed debate over electoral transparency and the role of technology in Nigeria’s voting process.
