- Human rights activist Omoyele Sowore criticised Nigerian senators, saying they could not be trusted to enforce real-time electronic transmission of election results
- He warned that ambiguous language in the Electoral Act favoured those attempting to manipulate polls
- Sowore called for clear, mandatory provisions and credible enforcement to protect transparency in Nigeria’s elections
Human rights activist and publisher Omoyele Sowore has criticised Nigerian senators, saying they cannot be trusted to handle the issue of real-time electronic transmission of election results.
Sowore made the remarks on Wednesday during an interview on Channels Television’s ‘The Morning Brief’, where he commented on the ongoing debates surrounding the Electoral Act Amendment Bill.
His comments follow the “Occupy National Assembly” protest held in Abuja on Monday, during which Nigerians gathered to express opposition to the Senate’s rejection of mandatory e-transmission of election results.
“Obviously we can’t trust them, even when these two positions are harmonised, which is what they said they would do,” Sowore said. “We still have to come through the fine prints of what is in the final law they are going to pass. What I suspect and I know is that they’re not worried about you. They don’t worry about the public.”
He added that senators appear reluctant to include strong, unambiguous language in the Electoral Act that would make real-time transmission of results compulsory.
“They don’t want a situation where the judges are hamstrung by a definitive word; ‘shall or must’. What we’re saying here is that the language of this Electoral Act must be mandatory for elections to be transmitted, and wherever that is violated, there must be credible evidence or excuse,” Sowore explained.
He further noted that the burden of proof should not rest with the public or those challenging election manipulation, warning that the current approach favours those who attempt to rig polls. “And that is exactly what they are trying to avoid,” he added.
Sowore’s statements echo growing concerns among civil society groups, political activists, and ordinary Nigerians about the integrity of elections, and the need for clear, enforceable legal provisions to guarantee transparency in the electoral process.
With public pressure mounting, the fate of e-transmission and other electoral reforms remains a central issue as the National Assembly continues deliberations on the amendment bill, with stakeholders calling for unambiguous guarantees to strengthen Nigeria’s democracy.