President Tinubu assents Electoral Act 2026; opposition and civil groups raise concerns over transparency, electronic transmission, and network loopholes

President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday assented to the Electoral Act 2026 at the State House, Abuja, amid widespread debate over provisions on the electronic transmission of election results.

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The signing was witnessed by top National Assembly leaders, following the bill’s fast-tracked passage on Tuesday.

Tensions centred on real-time electronic transmission of polling unit results to Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) servers, a measure activists say is critical to prevent vote rigging.

Civil society groups and opposition figures had protested last week, demanding mandatory live uploads to restore public confidence, while ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders argued that unreliable rural networks made a hybrid electronic-manual approach more practical.

In his remarks, President Tinubu emphasised the human element in democracy, stressing manual ballot counting with electronic safeguards.

“The essence of democracy is to have very solid brainstorming discussions committed to national development and nation building… results are finalised by people,” he said, noting concerns over Nigeria’s broadband capacity.

Tinubu described the hybrid system as a practical compromise to prevent disenfranchisement while maintaining result transparency.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio hailed the amendments as a patriotic triumph tailored to Nigeria’s realities.

He explained that the hybrid model allows polling unit results to be transmitted electronically when network access is available, with physical forms (EC8A) providing the primary source for collation.

Any discrepancies between unit-level results and subsequent collation can be independently verified, he said, eliminating avenues for manipulation.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, highlighted the reduction of election notice periods from 360 to 300 days, enabling presidential and National Assembly elections to avoid Ramadan 2027 and potentially reducing voter apathy.

Opposition parties expressed strong reservations.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) described the rapid assent as a “betrayal” of Nigerians’ demands for mandatory electronic transmission, warning it could deepen electoral opacity.

The Labour Party (LP) echoed concerns, arguing the law favoured the ruling APC and undermined the integrity of future elections.

Civil society coalition the Centre for Nigerian Political Participation (CNPP) criticised ambiguities in the amendment regarding network failures.

The group warned that leaving verification to the discretion of presiding officers could create loopholes for manipulation and compromise electoral transparency.

CNPP urged President Tinubu to return the bill to the National Assembly with technology-driven safeguards, including independent real-time network verification, multi-layer authentication, and third-party monitoring of results transmission.

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Despite the concerns, President Tinubu and National Assembly leaders stressed that the Act strengthens democratic participation, allows party members direct input in primaries, and modernises Nigeria’s electoral framework while accommodating infrastructural realities.