Major opposition political parties in Nigeria — the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) — have jointly condemned the Senate’s decision to reject mandatory real-time electronic transmission of election results from polling units.
In a joint press statement issued on February 5, 2026, the parties described the Senate’s action as retrogressive, warning that it poses a serious threat to Nigeria’s democratic gains.
The statement was jointly signed by Comrade Ini Ememobong, National Publicity Secretary of the PDP; Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, National Publicity Secretary of the ADC; and Bamofin Ladipo Johnson, National Publicity Secretary of the NNPP.
The statement followed the Senate’s passage of an amendment to the Electoral Act 2022, which excluded provisions for compulsory electronic transmission of results at polling units.
According to the opposition parties, “The grave implications of this retrogressive act by the Senate has compelled us as spokespersons of the major opposition political parties to jointly address this issue, which is capable of derailing our hard-earned democracy.”
They expressed deep concern that the decision, driven by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Senate, could set the nation’s democratic progress back by decades.
“With this anti-people and anti-democratic action, we are concerned that on, the APC-led Senate may have set Nigeria’s democracy back by many decades. It is therefore not surprising that it has deservedly attracted widespread opposition and condemnation from Nigerians across all divides,” the statement read.
The parties questioned what they described as the ruling party’s inconsistency in its attitude toward technology, especially in the electoral process.
“We are at a loss as to why a party that is currently deploying technology to run an e-registration of their members across the country is averse to using technology to transmit results,” they stated.
They further alleged that the Senate’s decision was politically motivated, accusing the APC of attempting to preserve loopholes for electoral manipulation ahead of future polls.
“We therefore harbour no doubts about the intention of the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is in firm control of the two chambers of the National Assembly. They know Nigerians are fed up with them. They are aware of the rejection that awaits them at the forthcoming polls. A free and fair election has therefore become a threat to them,” the statement said.
The opposition parties argued that mandatory electronic transmission of results would improve transparency and public confidence in elections, noting that the absence of such a provision had previously weakened judicial outcomes.
“In the last election, we are witnesses to the plethora of cases where the court, especially the Supreme Court, held that there was nowhere in the principal Act, which is the Electoral Act 2022, where electronic transmission was made mandatory and therefore the act is lacking of legislative parentage,” they said.
They stressed that the Senate’s refusal to close this legal gap amounted to a reversal of progress.
“With this rejection, the Senate has returned Nigeria to square one,” the parties added.
Calling on lawmakers to put national interest above party loyalty, the opposition urged the conference committee to adopt the position earlier taken by the House of Representatives.
“The ball is now in the court of the conference committee, and we strongly urge its members to align themselves with the Nigerian people by adopting the position of the House of Representatives on mandatory real-time electronic transmission of election results,” the statement concluded.