ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- Senator representing Bauchi Central, Abdul Ningi, has said it is possible for the Senate to make its voting process on the real-time electronic transmission of election results public, amid growing controversy surrounding the amendment of the Electoral Act.
Ningi stated this on Monday while appearing on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, ahead of the emergency plenary session scheduled for Tuesday to deliberate further on the issue.
Responding to questions on whether Nigerians could know how individual senators voted on the matter, Ningi said the Senate rules permit open voting, depending on the disposition of the presiding officer.
“I think it’s possible. It depends on the presiding officer because the law provides for that,” he said.
“You can stand up and say, ‘I, Ningi, accept e-transmission in real time,’ then you sit down. It is recorded for every senator, and that is the only way we need to move forward.”
The Bauchi lawmaker expressed concern that the votes and proceedings of the Senate were not clearly captured during the passage of the amendment bill, stressing the need for clarity.
“One thing that is very important is that the votes and proceedings have not been captured. So tomorrow, we need to look at what the votes and proceedings captured are,” he said.
He questioned the procedure that led to the adoption of the contentious provision, noting that a motion for amendment was raised without adequate explanation to lawmakers.
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“There was a motion for amendment by Manguno, and then the question was put. Who asked the question? Why was the question raised? Was it discussed?” Ningi asked.
He added that senators ought to have been properly briefed on the implications of the amendment before a decision was taken.
According to him, the controversy should not be reduced to partisan politics, insisting that the issue cut across party lines.
“This is not a party thing. It has never been a party thing up to the time we went into the committee of the whole,” he said.
“If tomorrow the Senate President decides to say, ‘Is it transfer or transmission?’ and the gavel is sealed on transfer, then the majority would have their way.”
Ningi also expressed displeasure over what he described as the blanket condemnation of the Senate over the matter.
“I feel sad and outraged when I see the condemnation of the Senate in its entirety. That is why we need to tell the story,” he said.
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He maintained that an overwhelming majority of senators support electronic transmission of election results, adding that state governors across party lines had made similar submissions.
“I can tell you that about 98 per cent of senators agree with the submission made by the House. APC governors have presented their views, PDP governors too, and they are all saying e-transmission,” he said.
The Senate has come under intense criticism since February 4, 2026, when it passed the Electoral Act Amendment Bill through third reading, rejecting a proposed amendment to Clause 60(3) that sought to make real-time electronic transmission of results mandatory.
Instead, the Senate retained the existing provision of the Electoral Act, which allows presiding officers to transfer election results in a manner prescribed by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, had explained that while electronic transmission of results remains permissible, the phrase “real time” was deliberately removed to avoid legal complications arising from possible network failures.
However, the decision has sparked protests, including the “Occupy National Assembly” demonstration in Abuja on Monday, with protesters insisting that the phrase “real-time electronic transmission” must be expressly included in the law.