The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, on Sunday disclosed that the National Assembly approved a hybrid system combining electronic and manual transmission of election results in the amended Electoral Act, to avoid voter disenfranchisement and boost participation ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Abbas noted that inadequate internet coverage and persistent power supply challenges across parts of the country make exclusive reliance on real-time electronic transmission impossible nationwide.
The Speaker remarked to Ambassador Felix Costales, the Spanish ambassador to Nigeria, during an official visit to his office at the National Assembly complex in Abuja.
Abbas received the envoy with Abubakar Bichi, the chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations; Wole Oke, the chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs; and Jafaru Yakubu, the chairman of the Nigeria-China Parliamentary Friendship Group, according to a statement released by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Musa Krishi.
According to the statement, the Spanish envoy also mentioned that Spain has a system in place that permits the manual transfer of election results.
Based on his interactions with the Independent National Electoral Commission’s leadership, Abbas promised that the general elections in 2027 will be more inclusive and credible.
Regarding the Election Act, the Speaker stated, “Sometimes, people scream far beyond the exact level of the issue. A lot of people think that we need to embrace electronic transmission in real-time in Nigeria, but within the very little period that you’ve been in Nigeria, you should be able to speak on the quality of our internet network. You should know that even in advanced cities like Abuja, you are not guaranteed stable internet services all the time.:
“Based on the NCC report, they said Nigeria is still underserved by almost 40 per cent, which means 40 per cent of territories at large in Nigeria are not covered by the internet. Now, tell me, for those who are saying we should go ahead and do that, already, if you look at the number of our registered voters in this country, it is alarming, he continued.
“It is sad to say that even with the manual arrangement we are using, we are only able to capture about 12-15 per cent of registered voters who, after every four years, come to vote. That’s voter apathy. Very few people go out to vote.”
Only electronic transmission may further stifle participation, he said. “Now, if we are to introduce only the electronic system, it will further reduce the number because 40 per cent of the country will probably not be able to vote as they don’t have adequate internet services. It means what we should be expecting is not only disenfranchising the voters—denying some people the right to vote—we will also record, perhaps, the lowest number of voters in the next elections.
“These are all avoidable. That is why we said, in our wisdom, the Electoral Act should be hybrid—a combination of both the manual and electronic systems. Where it is feasible to use the electronic transmission, use the electronic transmission; where it is not possible, use the manual, because there is no way one form, particularly the electronic, can be used entirely in all parts of the country for the elections.”
The Speaker went on to say that even those who opposed the clause were aware of the nation’s infrastructural shortcomings.
“The opposition, even though they know the truth—are Nigerians, they live in Nigeria, they travel all over Nigeria—they know that the level of internet penetration in Nigeria is inadequate. There is no way you will be able to have transparent elections using an inadequate system, and through our energy crisis in the country as well, we do not have enough electricity.
“The internet is always backed by energy. How do you power the entire country on the day of the election to have phones that are working and internet that is working, backed by adequate electricity? All those are challenges that, for now, will not be able to provide us the opportunity to do transmission in real time online.”
According to Abbas, democracy is a slow process that gets better with time. “Year after year, election after election, we will continue to improve throughout our entire democracy,” he declared. I think Nigeria will perform better with the help of nations like Spain.
“We expect you to continue to guide us and give us all the technical advice and support to do better, particularly in the National Assembly, through collaboration between your country and our parliament. It will go a long way in strengthening our competence, particularly in areas of legislative drafting and so on. I believe that with what you have in Spain, Nigeria can benefit a lot.”
Despite current obstacles, he continued, Nigeria was making steady progress.“You cannot say you have everything that you require. You keep on learning. We believe that Nigeria is not doing badly, even though it may not be at the rate that the international community would want to see, but we are moving slowly and gradually.”
Costales had earlier stated that the purpose of his visit was to develop bilateral relations between Spain and Nigeria and to strengthen legislative diplomacy. He declared that Spain would support initiatives to fortify democratic institutions and keep a careful eye on Nigeria’s election process.
“You can count on us—whatever we can do to deepen Nigerian democracy. Yes, there may be challenges, but you can count on us in any way possible.”
Additionally, the ambassador pointed out that political polarisation was a worldwide issue. “I said,“Sometimes when you dig down, you realise that the issues are not that big, or not as big as they seem in the public discourse. It happens a lot in Spain… At the end of the day, if you want to move forward in democracy, you have to reach some level of compromise. We have to try to rule and govern on the level of consensus.”
