Nigerian Electoral Reforms : Senate Backs Electronic Results Transmission With Manual Safeguards
*A Step Forward, With Old Risks Still in View
The approval of electronic transmission of election results by the Nigerian Senate, while retaining manual collation as backup, marks another important moment in the country’s long and often contested electoral reform journey.
It reflects a cautious attempt to modernise the voting process without ignoring Nigeria’s persistent infrastructural and operational deficiency. At the heart of the amendment is a compromise: results may be transmitted electronically where the technological infrastructure permits, but in situations of network failure or connectivity challenges, manual applications would take over.
Form EC8A, duly signed and stamped by the presiding officer, will remain a valid instrument for collation. On paper, the balance appears sensible. In practice, however, its success will depend less on legislative intent and more on implementation, oversight, and political will.
Electronic transmission of election results has long been advocated by electoral reformers, civil society groups, political pundits, and sections of the international community. Its core advantage lies in speed and transparency.
When polling unit results are uploaded in real time to a central server, opportunities for post-poll manipulation, particularly during physical movement of results, are significantly reduced.
For voters, this builds confidence.
The closer the announced results are to what citizens witnessed at the polling unit, the stronger the legitimacy of the outcome. Electronic transmission also enhances auditability, creating digital trails that can be independently verified in the event of disputes.
In a country where allegations of result tampering often arise between polling units and collation centres, this reform addresses a long-standing weak link in the electoral chain.
However, the insistence of Senate to retain Form EC8A as a fallback option reflects an acknowledgment of Nigeria’s uneven technological landscape.
Network coverage remains inconsistent, especially in rural and riverine communities. Power supply challenges, device malfunction, and cybersecurity risks are also real concerns.
In this context, a complete abandonment of manual processes could disenfranchise voters in areas where technology fails.
The manual backup, therefore, serves as a safe mechanism, ensuring that no valid vote is discarded due to circumstances beyond the voter’s control.
From an administrative standpoint, this dual-track approach allows the electoral umpire to adapt to local realities rather than enforcing a rigid, one-size-fits-all system.
While the compromise is pragmatic, it is not without risks. The biggest concern lies in selective deployment. If not clearly regulated, officials could deliberately cite “network failure” or “gleaches” to revert to manual processes in politically sensitive areas, reopening old avenues for manipulation.
There is also the challenge of conflict between results. What happens when electronically transmitted figures differ from manually collated ones? Without a clearly defined hierarchy of evidence and rapid dispute-resolution mechanisms, such discrepancies could fuel post-election litigation and political tension.
Another potential pitfall is capacity. Electronic transmission is only as credible as the competence and integrity of the officials operating the system. Poor training, weak internal controls, or compromised devices could undermine the very transparency the reform seeks to promote.
However , cybersecurity remains an under-discussed issue. As Nigeria embraces digital electoral tools, the system becomes a potential target for hacking, misinformation, or sabotage. Legislative approval must therefore be matched with robust investment in digital security and independent system audits.
No doubt, laws do not conduct elections : institutions and people do. For this amendment to deliver meaningful reform, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) must issue clear operational guidelines, specifying when and how manual backups could be invoked, and under what conditions electronic results would prevail.
Equally important is public transparency. Real-time access to uploaded results, independent monitoring, and stiff sanctions for abuse of either system would be critical in preventing the manual option from becoming a loophole, rather than a safeguard.
The Senate’s decision signals progress, but it is not a silver bullet. It reflects Nigeria’s incremental approach to reform ; advancing technology while hedging against systemic weaknesses. Whether this balance strengthens democracy or merely repackages old problems in a new framework would depend on how faithfully the spirit of the law is upheld.
For now, the amendment offers an opportunity: to modernise elections without excluding voters; and to rebuild public trust without ignoring reality. Seizing that opportunity will require vigilance long after the applause in the chamber has subsided.