The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has condemned the Senate’s insertion of a manual transmission fallback clause in the Electoral Act amendment, describing it as an “escape clause” that threatens the credibility of the 2027 general elections.
In a statement by National Publicity Secretary Ini Ememobong, the PDP accused the Senate of being “clever by half” and alleged that opposition to real-time electronic transmission is driven by fear, specifically targeting Senate President Godswill Akpabio, whom it claimed remains “haunted by the ghost of his 2019 election loss.”
The party argued that the BVAS technology, capable of accrediting voters, cannot suddenly become unreliable for transmitting results. The PDP urged the National Assembly Conference Committee to adopt the House of Representatives’ version mandating real-time transmission and called on Nigerians to remain resolute in demanding electoral transparency.
Key Points:
The clause undermines public confidence in electoral integrity and threatens the legitimacy of the 2027 outcome.
It preserves opportunities for result manipulation during collation, defeating the purpose of electronic transmission.
Nigerian voters bear the ultimate democratic cost, while political actors resistant to transparency seek to retain manipulation pathways.
The PDP’s accusation directly links Senate leadership’s personal electoral history to institutional policy positions.
The timing, ahead of harmonisation, places intense public scrutiny on conference committee deliberations.
The battle over electronic transmission now shifts to the harmonisation committee, where the House and Senate versions must be reconciled into a final bill for presidential assent.
Sources: Premium Times, PDP Statement