Former senior officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have criticised what they describe as significant ambiguities in the Electoral Act 2026, warning that unclear provisions on electronic transmission of results could undermine electoral integrity ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Speaking at a roundtable in Abuja organised by Yiaga Africa, the ex-officials highlighted inconsistencies involving the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), the Smart Card Reader, and the legal framework guiding result transmission.
Former National Commissioner Festus Okoye said while BVAS remains one of Nigeria’s most innovative electoral technologies, the Electoral Act 2026 contains drafting gaps that may create confusion during implementation.
He noted that although references to the Smart Card Reader were replaced with BVAS in some sections of the law, the substitution was not applied uniformly.
Okoye cautioned lawmakers against embedding specific technologies directly into legislation, stressing that electoral technology evolves rapidly.
According to him, constant amendments each time a device changes could weaken the legal framework.
A major concern raised at the dialogue was Section 60 of the Act, which mandates electronic transmission of polling unit results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) but retains the manually completed Form EC8A as the primary document for collation and declaration.
The officials argued that conflicting interpretations of Sections 60, 65, and 155—particularly the definition of “transmit” as manual or electronic—leave room for legal disputes.
Former ICT Director Chidi Nwafor traced Nigeria’s electoral technology reforms back to biometric voter registration introduced under former INEC Chairman Attahiru Jega, emphasising the need for clearer legal backing.
The stakeholders urged the National Assembly to urgently harmonise the Electoral Act 2026 to eliminate ambiguities, safeguard electronic transmission of results, and strengthen public trust in Nigeria’s democratic process.
