Monday, March, 2 2026 - The Civil Society Network on Election Integrity and the Electoral Act has called on the Nigerian government to, without delay, make copies of the signed Electoral Act available to the public, noting that citizens deserve full access to the law that will govern their votes.
The Network also tasked the National Assembly to immediately
review other sections of the Act that create new rules and ambiguities capable
of enabling electoral manipulation.
Fielding questions at a citizens’ town hall meeting held in
Abuja on Sunday, Samson Itodo of Yiaga Africa, noted that the Electoral Act
needs to sustain the trust reposed in it and not create loopholes that are
capable of being exploited by political actors.
He said, “As we prepare to vote, one question lingers in the
minds of Nigerians. Will the Electoral Act of 2026 strengthen the sanctity of
the ballot, or is it merely a refining of the mechanics of contestation?
“The new law must strengthen accountability and shared
responsibility because citizens are asking, if we vote, will our vote truly
become the ballot?
“We are here to interrogate the law, to identify the gaps
and strengths that confront those gaps, to ask whether the safeguards of the
law are sufficient, and to develop clarity in implementation.”
Itodo noted that laws do not protect democracy by their mere
existence but only when they are implemented with integrity, with public
scrutiny, and oversight.
“The quality of preparations, the transparency of resource management, the
professionalism of election officials, how political aspirants restrain
themselves, and more importantly, the independence and the integrity of
security agencies. These are what form the credibility of the election,” he
asserted.
A panellist at the meeting, Professor Okechukwu Ibeanu, a
professor of political science at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, asserted
that the newly ammended Electoral Act has taken Nigeria back to 2018 when the
conversation for electronic transmission of result began.
“In my opinion, the Act takes us back, probably back to
2018, when those debates were actually had in this country. Nigerians came out
clearly to insist that electronic transmission is essential for the protection
of their votes. I think there is a need to take a second look at Sections 16,
52, and 64 of the Electoral Act, he said.
“I think it is important for INEC to realise the
responsibility that it has as an organisation, to make the necessary
regulations and guidelines, to bring some clarity to what these provisions are.
It’s not going to be easy, but I think that with the support of citizens, it is
possible for INEC to do the needful.
“We consistently interpret the electoral agreement as if it
holds all the answers to our electoral problem. I think we also handed the
process of amending the Act to politicians, the same people who are meant to
regulate their behaviour, are the ones who take the lead in amending it.
“The implication is that we end up with the kind of people
we have, where amendments to the law are meant to serve primarily, not defend
the votes of citizens, but the calculations of politicians,” he further stated.
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