…Defections Fuel One-Party Dominance, Shape Senate Decisions — Ningi
…says it’s left to Nigerians to decide
Prominent civil society leaders and opposition lawmakers have sharply criticised the Nigerian Senate over its decision to allow both electronic and manual transmission of election results, warning that the amendment could undermine electoral transparency ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Oby Ezekwesili, a former minister and education advocate, described the Senate’s action as “an insult on the collective intelligence of Nigerians,” accusing lawmakers of deliberately creating loopholes to manipulate future elections.
“That cock-eyed provision on electoral transmission that the Nigerian Senate just passed is an insult on the collective intelligence of Nigerians,” Ezekwesili said.
Read also: Senate bows to pressure, adopts e-transmission of election results
“In a functioning democracy, the elected can NEVER be greater than the collective will of those who elected them. Never,” she added.
Ezekwesili alleged that the controversial clause was designed to weaken public confidence in the electoral process, insisting that Nigerians were being warned that their votes might not count.
“The Senate President and his collaborators are brazenly giving Nigerians a heads-up that our votes will not count because that vexing clause they passed is their loophole to rig the 2027 elections,” she said.
She contrasted the Senate’s decision with the position earlier adopted by the House of Representatives, which passed a bill mandating real-time electronic transmission of polling unit results.
“Kudos to the lawmakers at the House of Representatives that boldly passed a bill which legally mandates electronic transmission of polling unit results in real time,” Ezekwesili said, quoting the provision.
Clause 60(3) of the House version states: “INEC shall electronically transmit election results from polling units to the INEC Result Viewing Portal in real time, and such transmission shall be done simultaneously with the physical collation of results.”
“We salute our members of the Nigerian House of Representatives for totally aligning with the citizens’ quest for electoral transparency,” she added.
Ezekwesili further warned that public patience was wearing thin, urging the Senate leadership to reconsider its stance.
“The real-time question is whether the Akpabio-led Senate is ready for the Nigerians who have run out of patience with their shenanigans. It is not wise to play with fire. Transparency is always better,” she said.
Aisha Yesufu, a rights activist, also condemned the Senate’s decision in strong terms, questioning lawmakers’ credibility as representatives of the people.
“The Nigerian Senate has insulted the sensibilities of Nigerians,” Yesufu said. “They have shown they are not deserving of the trust Nigerians have given them to represent the people.”
Meanwhile, Abdul Ningi, a member of the People’s Democratic Party, acknowledged that the amendment represented an improvement over an earlier version but blamed the outcome on partisan dominance within the chamber.
“This is an improvement from what was passed last week,” Ningi said.
“But Nigerians must appreciate the fact that over two-thirds of members are APC, and you could see it has taken a party dimension.”
Read also: Amaechi, son join protest over real time transmission of election result
According to him, the ruling party’s numerical strength determined the outcome of the vote.
“They have the numbers, so they can do what they want to do. That is democracy,” he said, adding that the development raised concerns about a drift towards a one-party system.
“You could see they have been cajoled into one party. Previously, there was no party issue. Today, they were trying to take a semblance of party,” Ningi said.
Speaking on the reason why the minority senators didn’t back Eyinnaya Abaribe on the call for division, Ningi stressed that opposition lawmakers had formally registered their resistance but said the final judgment now lay with the Nigerian public.
“At the end of the day, we have made our point as opposition senators that we are against this. The whole thing boils down to Nigerians. Let them decide. If that is the kind of country we want, that’s all,” he said.
