Representing Anambra Central APGA, Senator Victor Umeh has warned that Nigeria risks undermining public confidence in its electoral process if the National Assembly fails to clearly entrench real-time electronic transmission of election results in law, insisting that ambiguity in the ongoing amendment of the Electoral Act could reopen the credibility crisis witnessed after the 2023 general elections.
Speaking in an interview with ARISE NEWS on Sunday, Umeh said he fears expressed by Nigerians that electronic transmission may be quietly removed from the amended Electoral Act were legitimate, given how the Senate handled its internal proceedings.
“What is ongoing now is something that, if care is not taken, the fears of Nigerians will be confirmed — that electronic transmission of results will be dropped,” Umeh warned.
He stressed that while senators largely agreed during a closed-door session that results should be transmitted electronically to INEC’s portal, that consensus was effectively overturned during plenary without debate.
“While we agreed that electronic transmission of results would be retained during our closed session, when we returned to plenary, something happened. The Chief Whip moved that electronic transmission be expunged and replaced with ‘transfer’, the Deputy Senate President seconded it, and the Senate President immediately put it to a voice vote,” he said.
“That is the crux of the matter.”
Umeh explained that the resulting decision meant that what currently exists in the Senate’s version of the amendment is not electronic transmission but a return to the vague provision of “transfer of results” contained in the 2022 Electoral Act.
“Anybody who says electronic transmission was not removed is not saying the truth. What you will find there is transfer of results. Go and read Section 65 of the 2022 Electoral Act — it talks about transfer, not electronic transmission,” he stated.
He noted that the push to amend the Electoral Act was triggered by the Supreme Court’s ruling after the 2023 presidential election, which held that electronic transmission was not recognised under existing law and therefore inadmissible as evidence.
“This issue did not come from the moon. It came from what happened in 2023, where the Supreme Court said electronic transmission is unknown to our law,” Umeh said.
“That judgement informed the effort to amend the Electoral Act so that electronic transmission of results will be clearly provided for.”
According to the senator, the amendment process was exhaustive and inclusive, involving INEC, political parties, civil society organisations, legal experts and judges, all of whom agreed that electronic transmission of results should be entrenched in law.
“At the retreat attended by all stakeholders, everybody agreed that electronic transmission of results to the INEC portal in real time was necessary,” he said.
“Across the six geopolitical zones during public hearings, Nigerians were united in demanding that electronic transmission of results be inserted into the Electoral Act.”
Umeh said both the Senate and House of Representatives committees on electoral matters initially returned reports reflecting those public demands, noting that the House of Representatives had already passed electronic transmission as part of its amendments.
“The House of Representatives passed electronic transmission of results, direct primaries, delegate congresses and consensus for nominations,” he said.
He expressed concern that approving the Senate’s current votes and proceedings before harmonisation with the House could effectively kill electronic transmission altogether.
“If the votes and proceedings are approved the way they are, then electronic transmission of results has collapsed,” Umeh warned.
“At that point, what will Nigerians do?”
Responding to claims that poor infrastructure would make electronic transmission impractical, Umeh dismissed the argument, citing multiple elections successfully conducted using the same technology.
“The issue of infrastructure does not arise,” he said.
“All of us — 109 senators and 360 members of the House of Representatives — came from the same 2023 election conducted in one day. There was no glitch in transmitting National Assembly election results.”
He added that subsequent elections had further proven the reliability of electronic transmission.
“In the Anambra governorship election of November 8, by 8pm, all polling unit results had been uploaded to the IREV portal. There was no protest, and the result was declared within hours,” he said.
“I viewed them myself. It worked.”
Umeh also rejected claims that electricity shortages could obstruct electronic transmission.
“INEC devices use batteries. They do not depend on electricity,” he said.
“If you upload and it doesn’t go through immediately, within seconds or a few minutes it will.”
The senator maintained that removing electronic transmission would leave election disputes vulnerable to the same legal loopholes exposed in 2023.
“If you go back to court again, the Supreme Court will tell you that electronic transmission is not in the law,” he said.
“Then we begin to shout again. Why remove something that promotes confidence and transparency? Nobody is harmed by electronic transmission.”
On public protests and civil society pressure, Umeh said Nigerians had a democratic right to speak out.
“Democracy is government of the people, by the people and for the people,” he said.
“You can never discount the opinion of the people in whatever you do.”
Addressing questions about his political future amid widespread defections, Umeh said Nigeria’s political space was experiencing an abnormal phase, with opposition parties weakened.
“We are going through an abnormal phase in Nigeria’s democracy where political parties are not allowed to function properly,” he said.
“Today, we have 31 governors from one party. I have never seen this in my 27 years in politics.”
He insisted that Nigeria must preserve alternative political platforms to safeguard democracy.
“Everybody cannot belong to one political party,” Umeh said.
“Nigeria must have alternative platforms where citizens can say no, even when the majority has its way.”
Pressed to clarify his party status, the senator concluded bluntly:
“I am not in the Labour Party. I am no longer in the Labour Party.”
Boluwatife Enome
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