Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has said that making electronic transmission of election results real-time and mandatory would effectively curb rigging and restore public confidence in Nigeria’s electoral process.
Building on this position, El-Rufai criticised the National Assembly for weakening provisions on electronic transmission in the ongoing amendments to the Electoral Act.
He made these remarks during an interview yesterday, shortly after protests erupted at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja over the amendments.
The former governor argued that resistance to real-time transmission is driven largely by political self-interest rather than technical concerns, noting that any delay between voting and result uploads creates opportunities for manipulation.
According to him, credible elections depend on closing loopholes that allow results to be altered after polls, with technology serving as the most reliable safeguard against such practices.
He added that lawmakers opposing real-time transmission are trying to retain electoral advantages that rely on opacity, and accused the ruling political establishment of resisting electoral reform for survival reasons. He also noted, however, that not all arms of the legislature share the same stance.
El-Rufai observed that the House of Representatives has shown greater openness to electronic transmission than the Senate, which he described as the main obstacle.
He urged lawmakers to guarantee electronic transmission in law, stating “We have suffered from glitches before. We don’t want any loopholes again. Our votes must truly count.”
