Atiku Reacts as Senate Rejects Electronic Transmission of Election Results
- Former vice president Atiku Abubakar condemned the Senate’s rejection of real-time electronic transmission of election results from polling units
- Atiku described the decision as a deliberate assault on electoral transparency, warning it could weaken public trust in Nigeria’s democracy
- He urged Nigerians, civil society groups, the media and the international community to keep demanding reforms ahead of the 2027 election
Legit.ng Journalist Muslim Muhammad Yusuf is a 2025 Wole Soyinka Award winner, with over 8 years of experience in investigative reporting, human rights, politics, governance and accountability in Nigeria.
Former vice president Atiku Abubakar has reacted strongly to the decision of the Nigerian Senate to reject the proposal seeking to make real-time electronic transmission of election results from polling units mandatory.
According to him, the decision was not accidental but a “deliberate assault” on efforts to strengthen the credibility of elections.
Source: Twitter
Legit.ng reports that the Nigerian Senate has retained the provision in Clause 60 of the 2022 Electoral Act allowing election results to be transmitted in a manner prescribed by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
Atiku, in a statement posted on his official X (formerly Twitter) handle on Thursday, February 5, described the Senate’s action as a direct attack on transparency and a setback for electoral reforms in Nigeria.
Atiku: Senate decision is assault on transparency
Reacting to the development, the former presidential candidate said the Senate’s rejection of real-time electronic transmission of results was a calculated move against transparency, credibility and public trust in Nigeria’s democratic process.
He wrote:
“The decision of the Nigerian Senate to reject the real-time electronic transmission of election results is a deliberate assault on electoral transparency.”
Atiku added that the move was coming at a time when democracies across the world were improving their electoral processes through technology, but Nigeria was taking the opposite direction.
The former vice president warned that by rejecting electronic transmission, the Senate was choosing to “cling to opacity,” protect loopholes and preserve a system that had historically enabled manipulation and post-election disputes.
He argued that electronic transmission was not a partisan demand but a democratic safeguard.
In his words:
“Real-time electronic transmission of results is not a partisan demand; it is a democratic safeguard.”
Atiku raises concerns about 2027 election
Atiku said the Senate’s decision raised serious questions about the commitment of the ruling political establishment to conduct free, fair and credible elections ahead of the 2027 general election.
He also alleged that there was a pattern where reforms that improve transparency were resisted, while ambiguities that benefit incumbency were protected.
Source: UGC
The former vice president insisted that elections should be determined by voters, not by delays, manipulation, or post-election legal battles.
He said democracy must evolve with time and technology, warning against what he described as “manual delays” and “backroom alterations”.
Atiku urged Nigerians, civil society organisations, the media and the international community to pay attention to what he described as a regression in Nigeria’s electoral reforms.
He concluded that Nigeria deserved elections that are transparent, verifiable and beyond manipulation.
Opposition parties slam Senate
Legit.ng earlier reported that major opposition political parties in Nigeria jointly condemned the Senate’s decision to reject a proposal seeking to make real-time electronic transmission of election results from polling units mandatory.
Reacting in a joint press statement dated February 5, 2026, the parties warned that the Senate’s action could weaken Nigeria’s democracy and reverse efforts aimed at improving transparency in the electoral process.
The statement was jointly signed by Comrade Ini Ememobong, the National Publicity Secretary, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, National Publicity Secretary, African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Bamofin Ladipo Johnson, National Publicity Secretary, New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP).
Proofreading by Funmilayo Aremu, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
