Former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi on Monday led a protest by supporters and pro-democracy activists at the National Assembly, urging lawmakers to reverse the removal of “real-time” electronic transmission of election results from the Electoral Act Amendment Bill.
The demonstration, which attracted hundreds of members of the Obidient Movement and civil society groups, was held under the banner “Occupy the National Assembly.” Participants described the move as a setback for electoral transparency ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The Senate last week passed the Electoral Act 2022 (Repeal and Reenactment) Amendment Bill, 2026.
However, critics faulted the deletion of the phrase “real-time” from sections dealing with electronic transmission of results, arguing that the change could weaken safeguards against electoral manipulation.
Although lawmakers have clarified that electronic transmission was not entirely removed, protesters insisted that the omission could open the door to post-election interference and erode public confidence in the electoral process.
Carrying placards bearing messages such as “Our votes must count,” “No to electoral robbery,” and “Defend democracy,” the demonstrators marched from the Federal Secretariat to the National Assembly complex.
Security operatives from the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigerian Army, and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps stopped them at the main gate, preventing entry into the complex.
Speaking to journalists outside the gates, Obi criticised what he described as the gradual weakening of democratic institutions, stressing that credible elections remain vital to national stability and development.
“We must dismantle this criminality and prove that Nigeria can be a beacon of hope and light in Africa,” he said.
His presence energised the protesters, many of whom view him as a leading figure in the youth-driven political reform movement that gained prominence during the 2023 elections.
The National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement Worldwide, Dr Yunusa Tanko, said the agitation would continue until lawmakers explicitly restore real-time electronic transmission of results in the amended law.
“If there is no electronic transmission of results, there will be no election. Our elections must be credible,” Tanko declared.
He argued that manual interference during result collation had historically undermined Nigeria’s elections and that electronic transmission was introduced to curb such practices following reforms after the 2011 and 2015 polls.
Nigeria’s electoral reform efforts intensified after the widely criticised 2007 general elections, leading to the introduction of card readers in 2015 and the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) in 2022, which were hailed as milestones in improving transparency despite operational challenges.
Electronic transmission of results was also a key demand by civil society groups during debates leading to the 2022 Electoral Act, with advocates insisting that it would reduce human interference and strengthen public trust in elections.
Another activist, Randy Peters, accused the political class of betraying democratic ideals and vowed that protesters would sustain pressure on lawmakers.
“We will continue to return here until the Senate does the right thing. The struggle for June 12 was about free and fair elections,” he said.
Invoking the June 12, 1993 election, widely regarded as Nigeria’s freest and fairest, Peters questioned why elected leaders would oppose reforms designed to guarantee credible outcomes.
“Are we afraid of losing elections? In 2027, our votes must count. That is the most important thing. We will be back here again tomorrow,” he added.
