“No Network in Nine States, So We Scrapped Electronic Transmission of Results” — Senate President Godswill Akpabio

In a significant statement on Nigeria’s electoral processes, Senate President Godswill Akpabio has explained the decision to abandon the plan for electronic transmission of election results in the recent polls.

Speaking to journalists and political stakeholders, Akpabio cited poor network coverage in at least nine states as the key reason the National Assembly ultimately decided against implementing electronic results transmission — a system that had been widely advocated as a measure to enhance transparency and curb manipulation.

According to the Senate President, logistical and infrastructural realities made it impossible to reliably transmit results electronically from many parts of the country. “Where there is no network, there is no transmission,” Akpabio reportedly remarked, emphasising that the Senate acted pragmatically in response to these limitations.

The plan for electronic transmission — long championed by civil society groups and some political parties — was intended to allow polling units to send results directly to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the public, reducing the risk of result alteration during collation.

However, critics have raised concerns that the decision to scrap the system may undermine confidence in the electoral process, pointing out that manual collation and announcement of results have historically been vulnerable to delays and disputes.

Supporters of the Senate’s move, on the other hand, argue that attempting to use an unreliable system could have led to widespread data loss and further complications on election day.

As the debate unfolds, many stakeholders are calling for urgent investment in telecommunications infrastructure, particularly in underserved regions, to ensure that future elections can leverage technology for greater credibility without being hindered by network challenges.