Prince Adewole Adebayo, a former Social Democratic Party (SDP) presidential candidate, has harshly criticized the recent changes to Nigeria’s Electoral Act that President Bola Tinubu signed into law, calling them “a setback for transparency and democratic integrity.”
Adebayo accused the federal government of putting “loopholes over transparency by weakening provisions for the electronic transmission of election results” in a message he issued on his official X (previously Twitter) account, @Pres_Adebayo.
The SDP leader claims that although “electronic transmission has not been completely abolished, the new revisions to the 2022 Electoral Act make it discretionary rather than mandatory – a shift he believes could undermine the credibility of future elections.”
“I was in Abuja and saw the anger of the Nigerian people after the government approved revisions to the 2022 Electoral Act,” he continued.
Real-time transmission, which ought to have been required, has been left up to personal preference. That loophole is important.
Making electronic transmission optional, he contended, essentially reverts the system to manual collation as the standard procedure, raising the possibility of manipulation and undermining public confidence.
Manual results collation becomes the practical default when electronic transmission is not required.
He added, “And trust in the process is damaged when results move through opaque channels.”
The SDP leader claimed that the administration is purposefully avoiding openness and called the signing of the modified bill “a blow against the very essence of Nigerian democracy.”
“It is unacceptable to make it simpler to alter the findings by eliminating the required electronic transmission.
He declared, “This administration is attacking the very democracy that generations of Nigerians fought so hard to secure.”
He went on to accuse President Tinubu of dishonoring Nigeria’s democratic fight past, saying the revisions are “a shameless attempt to remain in power.”
Adebayo emphasized that rather than eroding technological safeguards in the political process, Nigeria should be moving toward fully computerized voting.
He also said that Nigerians already depend on electronic systems for communication, banking, and commerce, and he questioned why the security of votes should not be treated with the same level of trust.
“There is a record when votes are sent in real time and transparently. Verification is present. “Accountability exists,” he stated.
Adebayo urged people and communities nationwide to keep calling for openness and equity in the voting process in spite of the new legislation.
He promised to support Nigerians who think their nation “deserves better,” saying, “The law may have changed, but the demand for transparency has not.”
Political players and civil society organizations have been debating the Electoral Act’s revisions, with some cautioning that the public’s confidence may be impacted by the weakening of electronic transmission regulations prior to the general elections in 2027.
