National Assembly and its new Electoral Act

ON Tuesday, February 17, the National Assembly eventually hauled off the lethargy that had characterised the amendment and reenactment process of the 2022 Electoral Act by holding emergency sittings which presented what looked like a fait accompli to the nation. Though the lawmakers, especially those on the ticket of the majority party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), would heap praises on themselves, the facts that have unfolded since the enactment of the bill and the assent given by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu some 24 hours after its passage into law reserve little or no praise for the lawmakers.

Not a few Nigerians have blamed the National Assembly for letting the people down in their search for the sanctity of the ballot by introducing a proviso that condemns e-transmission of votes from the polling units to an optional exercise. In the processes leading to the passage of the new electoral act, Nigerians were loud enough in proclaiming their preference for the introduction of electronic components into the electoral process. Such a conclusion results from the years of electoral heist that have been foisted on the people. It all started with ballot boxes snatching, stuffing, and thuggery, orchestrated violence, and arson on opponents’ strongholds. Following electoral reforms of the Umaru Yar’Adua/Goodluck Jonathan era, which provided a concrete electoral register for the nation, leading to the introduction of the Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) and later the Bimodal Voter Accreditation Systems (BVAS), politicians climbed a higher rung by making vote buying, its associated crimes and gerrymandering their antidotes to electoral integrity.

But in line with the people’s resolve on the sanctity of the ballot, opposition political personalities, civil society and youths had gathered for two days at the entrance of the National Assembly early in February to protest the plan to truncate real-time transmission of election results from the polling units to INEC’s Result Viewing portal (IReV), among other demands for electoral integrity. We know, and have acknowledged the constraints, but the National Assembly started its amendment to the Electoral Act very late in the day. It is depressing that the National Assembly would set aside the people’s calls and go ahead to pass an electoral law that seeks to preserve the status quo rather than accentuate their wishes.

For instance, aside from the call for accountability of votes, available data have confirmed growing voter apathy in the country, and there have been talks about an electoral offences tribunal, as well as the growing need for diaspora voting, in view of the huge population of diaspora Nigerians, an offshoot of the rising Japa syndrome. There have also been talks about the need for early voting in view of the massive involvement of teachers, civil servants, security agents, journalists, and other essential workers in election duties which usually take them away from their original places of residence. Emerging figures on voter apathy have been alarming. The turnout has kept dwindling since the 2003 election, where 69.1 percent of the people voted. In the 2007 election, 57.5 percent voted, and in 2011, 53.68 percent of the population (38.2 million) cast their votes. It further dropped to 43.65 percent (28.8 million) in 2015, and in 2019, the figure declined to 34.75 percent turnout (27.3 million). The lowest turnout was recorded in 2023 when 26.71 percent (24 million) of the people voted. Observers have often attributed the declining voter figures to electoral violence, lack of trust in the election management body, voter suppression, insecurity and the failure of democracy to deliver on its promises of good life, which some scholars have termed the “democracy paradox”.

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 In an atmosphere where good conscience and altruistic considerations are the watchwords, the National Assembly would have endorsed mechanisms that are tailor-made for the nation’s electoral challenges. Surprisingly, the 10th National Assembly chose to concern itself with issues such as the management of party primaries, an internal affair of the parties, banning indirect primaries and introducing a proviso on e-transmission. How would such legislation address the declining voter turnout and engineer the badly needed voter confidence? According to the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, who has been speaking in glowing terms about the new law, “The Electoral Act, 2026, represents a consolidation and refinement of the country’s electoral governance framework. In all, the Act seeks to enhance electoral credibility, reduce disputes, and strengthen democratic governance in Nigeria.  The Act emphasises financial and operational independence of INEC; technological integration with procedural safeguards; transparency in collation and declaration; stricter penalties for electoral offences and stronger regulation of political parties.”

Bamidele based his judgment on the introduction of Section 77 (1-7), which stipulates stringent measures for the conduct of party primaries, including the ban on indirect primaries and the introduction of electronic register of party members; the introduction of Section 92(1-8) which raised the spending threshold for all contestants; and the introduction of Section 125(1-2), which provided stricter punishment for offences of vote buying, impersonation, and result manipulation. The law recommends a two-year imprisonment for vote-buying offences or a fine ranging between ₦500,000 and ₦2 million or both upon conviction. Section 92(1-8) increased the spending threshold for presidential poll from ₦5 billion to ₦10 billion; governorship candidates from ₦1 billion to ₦3 billion; senatorial candidates from  ₦100 million to ₦500 million; House of Representatives seats from ₦70 million to ₦250 million; state House of Assembly members from ₦30 million to ₦100 million; Area Council chairmen from N30 million to ₦60 million, and councillors from ₦5 million to ₦10 million.

Even though the measures he listed amount to an improvement on what was obtainable in the nation’s electoral laws, the measures adopted by the 10th National Assembly are largely tokenistic in addressing the nation’s electoral challenges, despite the lawmakers having more than two years to tinker with the amendments. What remains key in view of the foregoing is that Nigerian citizens must sharpen their constitutional oversight on the National Assembly and even state assemblies to ensure the passage of critical laws that would affect the workings of the country’s democracy and national wellbeing, not the whims of the political class whose utmost concern remains regime sustainability, rather than the ultimate good of the larger society.