Senate Cites Data for Making Electronic Transmission of Results Optional

The Senate has defended its decision to make electronic transmission of election results discretionary rather than mandatory in the proposed Electoral Bill 2026, saying the move was guided by empirical evidence about Nigeria’s infrastructure limitations.

Leader of the Senate, Opeyemi Bamidele, disclosed this in a statement issued Sunday through his Directorate of Media and Public Affairs, stressing that lawmakers must base decisions on “facts and realities” rather than sentiment. According to him, legislative responsibilities require careful consideration of the country’s technological and power capacity to avoid laws that could destabilize governance.

The controversy centers on Clause 60(3) of the bill, which originally required presiding officers to electronically transmit polling unit results in real time to the election portal managed by Independent National Electoral Commission. The Senate reviewed the clause, removing the phrase “real time” and adding a caveat that where internet connectivity fails, Form EC8A would serve as the primary collation document.

Bamidele noted that while real-time transmission could strengthen public confidence in democratic institutions, including the National Assembly, lawmakers concluded that Nigeria’s infrastructure could not yet guarantee seamless implementation nationwide.

Quoting figures from the Nigerian Communications Commission, he said broadband coverage stood at about 70 percent in 2025, while internet penetration reached only 44.53 percent of the population. He also cited international network performance rankings showing Nigeria placed 85th of 105 countries in mobile network reliability and 129th of 150 in fixed broadband reliability.

He contrasted Nigeria’s average mobile speed of 44.14 Mbps with far higher figures recorded in countries such as United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Bulgaria. For fixed broadband, he said Nigeria ranked far behind global leaders like Singapore, France, Chile and Hong Kong.

The Senate leader also pointed to power supply constraints, stating that about 85 million Nigerians—roughly 43 percent of the population—lack access to grid electricity. Although generation capacity ranges between 12,000 and 13,500 megawatts, he said transmission and distribution systems can deliver only about 4,500 megawatts nationwide.

Given these conditions, Bamidele argued that mandating real-time electronic transmission could trigger disputes or crises if infrastructure fails during elections. Making the provision optional, he said, ensures flexibility while preserving electronic transmission as part of the electoral framework.

He maintained that lawmakers must enact legislation grounded in verifiable realities. “If our law does not capture the realities of the federation, then it is a script for anarchy or a ploy for instability,” he said, adding that the revised clause seeks to balance technological aspirations with existing limitations.