After the applause: Nigeria’s electoral reform and the lingering question of trust

By Eja Manifest Eji

With the stroke of a pen and the flash of cameras, a new chapter in Nigeria’s electoral journey was proclaimed open. Surrounded by lawmakers and senior government officials, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assented to the reworked Electoral Act passed by the 10th National Assembly. Flanked by Senate President Godswill Obot Akpabio and Speaker Tajuddeen Abbas, the ceremony projected confidence, reform, and progress.

But beyond the symbolism lies a deeper national conversation—one that asks whether Nigeria has truly addressed the core demand of its citizens: a transparent, mandatory, and technologically reliable system for transmitting election results.

The Promise and the Gap

The amended law provides for electronic transmission of results—yet stops short of making it compulsory in all circumstances. Instead, it allows for a fallback to manual processes where electronic transmission is deemed impracticable.

For many Nigerians, that caveat is not a safeguard; it is a loophole.

The controversy traces back to the 2023 general elections, when the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) cited technical glitches affecting the real-time upload of presidential results to its Results Viewing Portal (IReV). Expectations had been high. The 2022 Electoral Act had been celebrated as a turning point. Civil society groups, youth movements, and opposition parties believed technology would finally insulate the ballot from manipulation.

Instead, delays and inconsistencies bred suspicion. INEC maintained that results from polling units remained valid and that the glitches did not invalidate the process. Yet perception—often as powerful as reality—tilted toward doubt. For millions, the reform did not fail legally; it faltered psychologically.

The Network Argument

Lawmakers defending flexibility argue pragmatism. Nigeria, they say, is vast and uneven in infrastructure. What happens in remote riverine communities? In insurgency-prone zones? In villages where network signals fluctuate unpredictably?

It is a legitimate concern.

But citizens counter with a more pressing question: If not now, when?

How long will the country remain “not ready”? If financial technology can process billions in daily digital transactions across Nigeria’s terrain, why must electoral technology remain uncertain? The issue, critics argue, is not merely infrastructure—it is political will, contingency planning, and institutional accountability.

The Cost of Ambiguity

Democracy thrives on clarity. When the law leaves room for discretion at critical moments, public trust weakens. A fallback to manual collation may be necessary in extreme cases—but without strict, transparent guidelines and verifiable safeguards, that fallback risks becoming the preferred route.

Opposition leaders and civic advocates insist that the manual collation process has historically been vulnerable to interference between the polling unit and final collation centers. They argue that without mandatory real-time electronic transmission of polling unit results, disputes will persist, courtrooms will overflow, and the electorate’s faith will continue to erode.

The danger is not just electoral litigation—it is voter apathy.

Will Nigerians Show Up?

One of the silent crises in Nigeria’s democracy is declining voter turnout. Young Nigerians, in particular, oscillate between hope and frustration. They mobilize passionately during campaigns, only to feel disillusioned when outcomes are contested amid allegations of irregularities.

If confidence in the process weakens further, turnout may drop. And when citizens withdraw from the ballot, democracy itself suffers.

Transparent transmission is not just a technical matter—it is a psychological contract. It reassures the market woman in Onitsha, the student in Nsukka, the farmer in Zamfara, and the entrepreneur in Lagos that their vote travels intact from thumbprint to final tally.

The Way Forward

Reform must move beyond ceremony. Several steps could strengthen credibility:

1. Mandatory Upload at Polling Units: Results should be electronically transmitted immediately at the point of counting, with timestamped evidence accessible to the public.

2. Robust Offline-Backup Technology: Devices should store encrypted results capable of automatic upload once connectivity is restored—removing the need for discretionary manual substitution.

3. Transparent Audit Trails: Independent audit mechanisms should verify both electronic and manual processes.

4. Infrastructure Investment: Government must prioritize digital infrastructure expansion ahead of future elections.

5. Security Neutrality: Security agencies must operate with strict impartiality, ensuring safe access to polling units and collation centers.

6. Civic Oversight: Civil society and media organizations should be empowered to monitor and report technological compliance in real time.

Reform Is a Journey, Not a Headline

Nigeria’s democracy is still evolving. The amended Electoral Act reflects progress, but progress is not perfection. The debate over electronic versus manual transmission is, at its core, a debate about trust.

Trust cannot be legislated into existence; it must be built through consistency, transparency, and accountability.

The signing ceremony may have ended with applause. But for millions of Nigerians, the real verdict will come in the next general election—when ballots are cast, results transmitted, and citizens watch closely to see whether their democracy has matured or merely rehearsed reform once again.

Until then, the call remains clear: deepen the reforms, close the loopholes, and restore confidence in the power of the Nigerian vote.