UPDATED: Rowdy Session As Senate Tinkers With ‘Real-Time’ E-Transmission

The Senate has made a slight adjustment to its earlier position on electronic transmission of election results from the polling units to INEC’s IREV.

The Senate’s adjustment comes with the “real-time” clause. However, the new amendment allows INEC Returning Officers to transmit results manually where there is poor or no network signal.

Electronic transmission will now be deployed side by side manual transmission where network signal is too poor or unavailable.

The original provision that the Senate altered, states: “The Presiding Officer shall electronically transmit the results from each polling unit to IREV portal in real time and such transmission shall be done after the prescribed Form EC8A has been signed and stamped by the Presiding Officer and / or countersigned by the candidates or polling agents available at the polling unit.”

The co-option of manual transmission came through a motion by the Senate Whip, Mohammed Monguno and was adopted through an overwhelming voice vote.

The Senate had erupted in a rowdy session over moves to co-opt manual with electronic transmission.

The loud disagreements followed a call for division by opposition senator, Eyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South) on the vexed amendment.

A division allows individual senators to vote on a particular matter over which there is a general disagreement.

The process allows the senators to vote one after another while the Clerk of the Senate takes records of the voting.

Tuesday’s plenary kicked off with the Senate Whip Monguno’s call on the Senate to rescind its earlier rejection of electronic transmission of results and recommit the matter to a committee of the whole Senate.

Senator Abaribe’s insistence on division forced the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio to ask him if he really wanted the division.

In a dramatic move, however, Abaribe backed out of the call for division.

Consequently, Akpabio allowed Abaribe to withdraw the call for division.

The Senate’s earlier rejection of electronic transmission was greeted with public outcry, with opposition parties, civil society organisations and members of the deploring the action.

The Senate’s action had led to protests, with demonstrators marching through the main entrance of the National Assembly with calls on the Senate to retrace its steps.

Prominent among the protesters were the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, Mr Peter Obi; and a former Transportation Minister, Mr Rotimi Amaechi.