Senator Kalu Backs Senate’s Move to Mandate Electronic Transmission of Election Results
Abia North Senator Orji Uzor Kalu has publicly endorsed the Nigerian Senate’s recent approval of electronic transmission for election results, calling it a necessary step for national democratic integrity. His statement follows an emergency plenary session held on Tuesday, where the upper chamber amended the Electoral Act to enshrine this process.
The legislative action centres on an amendment to Section 60 of the Electoral Act. It mandates that presiding officers at polling units electronically transmit results directly to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Results Viewing Portal, known as IREV. Crucially, the amendment establishes electronic transmission as the primary method, applicable wherever the required technology is available and functional. This move is designed to replace or significantly reduce the previous practice of physical collation and manual transmission, which has often been cited as a vulnerability point for delays and potential tampering.
Senator Kalu, in his statement, explicitly confirmed his support for the Senate’s new position. “Today at the emergency plenary, I supported and added my voice to the Senate’s new position approving the electronic transmission of election results from polling units across Nigeria,” he said. He framed the reform within a broader democratic mandate, adding, “Our democracy must work for every Nigerian, everywhere.”
This amendment is part of a series of reforms aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s electoral system ahead of future general elections. Historically, the transmission and collation of results have been processes prone to logistical bottlenecks and allegations of manipulation, sometimes sparking political tensions. Proponents of electronic transmission argue that real-time, direct uploading to a central, publicly accessible portal like IREV enhances transparency, accelerates result declaration, and builds public confidence in the outcome.
The Senate’s decision sets the stage for further legislative coordination. The amendment must be concurred with by the House of Representatives before being presented to the President for assent to become law. INEC’s readiness to deploy and manage the required technology on a nationwide scale will be a critical factor in the successful implementation of this new primary method. The commission has previously tested IREV in various elections but scaling it for a national presidential or governorship poll presents a significant operational challenge.
The significance of this change lies in its potential to alter the final phase of Nigeria’s voting process. By making electronic transmission the default rule rather than an optional supplement, the legislature aims to curtail opportunities for result alteration during manual movement from polling units to collation centres. This reform is widely viewed as a key measure to ensure that the vote cast by citizens is the vote counted and declared, thereby reinforcing the credibility of electoral outcomes. The next steps involve harmonising the bill with the House of Representatives and securing presidential approval, after which INEC will be tasked with operationalising the mandate.
