Reps Upturn Decision, Okay Both Manual, E-Transmission Of Election Results

The House of Representatives on Tuesday upturned its decision to okay use of both manual and electronic transmission of election results.

This followed the rescission of the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill, 2205, which was passed last December, especially Section 60(3).

The former clause 60(3) of the Electoral Act amendment bill made it mandatory for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to electronically transmit results from polling units to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IREV) in real time, alongside physical collation of results.

However, the new one states that: “(3) The Presiding Officer shall electronically transmit the results from each polling unit to the IREV portal, and such transmission shall be done after the prescribed Form EC8A has been signed and stamped by the Presiding Officer and/or countersigned by the candidates or Polling agents where available at the Polling Unit.

“Provided that if the electronic transmission of the result fails as a result of communication failure and it becomes impossible to transmit the result contained in form EC8A, signed and stamped by the Presiding Officer and countersigned by the candidates or polling agents where available at the polling unit, the form EC8A shall remain the primary source of collation and declaration of the result.”

Other key clauses in the rescinded bill which caused uproar in the Chamber are clauses 28 and 84 which address the election notice timeline and the primary election mode.

Clause 28(1) states that: “the Commission shall, not later than 300 days before the day appointed for holding an election under this Bill, publish a notice in each State of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory —(a) stating the date of the election; and (b) appointing the place at which nomination papers are to be delivered.

Clause 28(3) states that, in the case of a by-election, the Commission shall, not later than 14 days before the date appointed for the election, publish a notice stating the date of the election.

Clause 28(4) provides that there shall not be substitution of candidates in a by-election except where a candidate of a political party in a by-election dies, the party shall submit to the Commission the name of its substitute candidate within seven days of the death of the candidate in the Form prescribed by the Commission.

Clause 84 prescribes only the direct and consensus mode of primary election for the nomination of candidates.

“(2) The procedure for the nomination of candidates by political parties for the various elective positions shall be by direct primaries or consensus,” it read.

Opposition Lawmakers Stage Walkout

Meanwhile, some opposition lawmakers staged a walkout of the chambers after the passage of clause 60(3)

The lawmakers led by the minority leader, Rt. Hon. Kingsley Chinda, stormed the House of Representatives Media Centre with the chants of “APC, ole! APC, ole (thief)!

Addressing newsmen, Chinda rejected the new clause 60(3) and others, which the minority caucus described as anti-people.

But briefing journalists, House Spokesman, Hon. Akin Rotimi, said the decisions taken by the House were in the best interest of the country and towards deepening democracy.

Rotimi said clause 28, for instance, would address the challenge of voter apathy, which is partly attributed to religious exercises such as fasting during elections.

Rowdy Session

The House was thrown into a rowdy session after a failed attempt to rescind the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill, 2025, which had already been passed.

Trouble started when the chairman of the Committee on Rules and Business, Francis Waive (APC, Delta), moved a motion seeking to rescind the passage of the bill in line with Order Nine, Rule 1(6) of the House Standing Orders.

Moving the motion, Waive said the motion was informed by the need to revisit the legislation to reflect emerging electoral reforms.

He urged lawmakers to rescind the earlier decision and recommit the bill to the Committee of the Whole for fresh consideration.

The motion was seconded and subsequently put to a voice vote by the Speaker, Abbas Tajudeen, but the majority of the lawmakers voted against it.

The outcome sparked protests on the floor, with members openly disagreeing, resulting in a rowdy session that lasted several minutes.

Subsequently, the House dissolved into executive (closed-door) session despite rejection by some members.

After the House reconvened, there was another commotion when lawmakers insisted on clause-by-clause reconsideration of the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill.

Uproar erupted in the House during consideration of the report at the committee of the whole chaired by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu.

While the chairman of the committee of the whole (Kalu) chose accelerated consideration (Clauses 1-10) and vice versa, the lawmakers insisted on clause-by-clause.

Overwhelmed by the shouts of clause-by-clause! clause-by-clause!, the chairman agreed to the demands of the lawmakers.