An emergency plenary of the Senate on Tuesday turned dramatic as lawmakers revisited the controversial Clause 60(3) of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, following public backlash and Monday’s “Occupy National Assembly” protest.
President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio aligned with a motion moved by Senator Tahir Munguno to rescind the earlier decision and recommit the clause for review.
After deliberations, the Senate agreed that electronic transmission of results from polling units would remain the primary method, but removed the requirement that such transmission must be done in “real time.”
Lawmakers also adopted a fallback option, allowing manual transmission using Form EC8A, duly signed and stamped by the Presiding Officer and countersigned by polling agents, in cases of network or communication failure.
Tension briefly flared when Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe called for a division, triggering shouting across the chamber.
He later sought to withdraw the motion, and after consultations, the Senate granted the request, averting a formal vote.
The Senate further expanded the Conference Committee on the bill from nine to 12 members, giving the panel one week to harmonise the Electoral Act Amendment Bill for transmission to the President before the end of February.
The review follows widespread criticism of the Senate’s earlier decision, which was widely perceived as a rejection of mandatory real-time electronic transmission of election results.
Below is text of the new Clause 60(3) (As Amended):
That the Presiding Officer shall electronically transmit the results from each polling unit to the IReV portal.
Such transmission shall be carried out after the prescribed Form EC8A has been duly completed, signed and stamped by the Presiding Officer, and countersigned by the candidates or their polling agents, where available, at the polling unit.
Provided that where electronic transmission fails as a result of communication or technical challenges, making it impossible to transmit the results electronically, the Form EC8A, duly signed and stamped by the Presiding Officer and countersigned by candidates or their polling agents where available, shall be the primary source for collation and declaration of results.
(Editors: Terverr Tyav and Ken Eseni)
