Senate Retained Electric Transmission Of Election Results, Senators Victor Umeh, Ireti Kingibe

Two Senators, Victor Umeh, Anambra Central and Mrs Ireti Kingibe, FCT Abuja, have explained that over 85 percent of Senators collectively passed the controversial amended 2022 Electoral Act, removing "real time" electronic transmission of election results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal, IReV.

Both Umeh and Kingibe spoke at different news conferences to explain the roles of Senators in passing the amended Bill.

The Senate on Wednesday, retained the provision for electronic transmission of results as contained in the Electoral Act 2022, but rejected proposals for real-time transmission of results and a 10-year ban for vote buyers, choosing instead to maintain the existing penalties of fines or jail terms.

The Senate decision has caused uproar across the country, after reports claimed that lawmakers had rejected electronic transmission and stricter sanctions for electoral offences.

But, reacting to the backlash on in an interview on Thursday, Umeh said claims that the Senate rejected electronic transmission of results misrepresented the chamber’s decision, pointing out that the resolution emerged from an extensive legislative process involving readings, consultations and public hearings across the country.

His words, “It takes a process to make a law. A bill must go through readings, public hearings and consultations before debate and passage. Law is not made by the national assembly alone. It is made by carrying Nigerians along.

“It is good to say that in all these retreats, all these zonal public hearings, all the consultations and joint sessions we had, one issue received unanimous approval and demand from the public, and that is to amend Clause 60 of the Electoral Act of 2022 as it affects transmission of results.

“It is based on these that all the stakeholders decided that this amendment will provide for the electronic transmission of results, so that where there is a dispute again, the court will not say that it is unknown to law.

“Of course, it was debated exhaustively, because their committee retained the electronic transmission of results on what they brought back to the senate. 

“Over 85% of senators agreed to electronic transmission. It was common ground. Even the ad hoc committee of the senate agreed to it.

“Eventually, I heard that somebody said they want to expunge ‘transmission’ and somebody seconded. It was not debated.

“If such a major alteration to what has been generally agreed to were to come up again, it would be thrown open again. We didn’t debate anything like that.”

Umeh noted that the controversial nature of the 2023 general elections heightened public expectations that the amended Electoral Act would improve credibility and restore confidence in future polls, noting that the amendment of Clause 60 of the Electoral Act 2022, which addresses the transmission of results, enjoyed unanimous backing during the Senate’s consultations.

According to him, the issue featured prominently at retreats, zonal public hearings and joint sessions organised by the National Assembly on the bill, adding further that stakeholders agreed to clearly provide for electronic transmission of results in order to avoid future legal ambiguities.

 According to Umeh, both chambers worked separately on the amendment, noting that the House of Representatives had already passed its version with explicit provisions for electronic transmission.

He also, further stressed that an eight-member ad hoc committee set up by Senate President Godswill Akpabio also retained the electronic transmission provision in its report to the Senate, dismissing claims that the provision was removed during plenary, as no such debate took place.

Umeh explained that polling unit results would be transmitted electronically to the INEC's IReV, kadding that the only change approved was the removal of the phrase “in real-time” due to concerns over possible technical delays.

In her own explanation on her X platform, slso Thursday, Senator Kingibe spoke in the same vein, noting that the Senate collectively passed electronic transmission of election results to IReV.

Kingibe stated, "The Senate did not reverse electronic transmission of results as provided in the 2022 Electoral Act.

“That provision was jointly agreed upon by the Senate and House committees. INEC and civil society groups were fully involved in the process.

All retreats concluded that electronic transmission was the best option for Nigeria.

“Any claim of deviation is a misunderstanding of what was collectively passed," dismissing reports suggesting a deviation from the agreed position.

According to Kingibe, the position on electronic transmission emerged from a consultative legislative process, noting that key stakeholders were all involved in the exercise.