Lawyer and member of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Kenneth Okonkwo, has criticised the National Assembly’s adoption of a provision allowing manual alternatives when electronic transmission of election results fails, warning that the move could weaken public trust and compromise the credibility of elections.
Speaking during an interview following the Senate’s emergency legislative session, Okonkwo described the development as deceptive and contrary to the wishes of Nigerians who have consistently demanded transparent electoral processes.
According to him, the justification that the session was convened to reflect the will of the people was misleading.
“What happened was a betrayal. Nigerians have been clear that they want unconditional electronic transmission of polling unit results to safeguard their votes. Instead, what was introduced creates room for manual intervention through the back door,” he said.
Okonkwo explained that electronic transmission is not the same as electronic voting or collation, stressing that the intention is simply to preserve and transmit manually recorded results electronically to prevent manipulation.
“Our elections are conducted manually at polling units, but the problem arises between the polling unit and the collation centre, where results are often altered, inflated, or manipulated. Electronic transmission helps preserve the original results and prevents tampering,” he stated.
He expressed strong opposition to the provision that permits manual transmission in cases where electronic upload fails, arguing that such discretion could be abused.
“When you allow manual transmission as an alternative, you legitimise excuses like technical glitches. That is exactly what creates opportunities for manipulation. Once there is a loophole, it will be exploited,” he said.
Okonkwo also referenced the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), noting that the law already provides clear consequences when accreditation technology fails.
“The law states that if BVAS fails, the election should be cancelled and rescheduled. Accreditation is more complex than uploading a result. Uploading is just a single action, yet they want to allow manual alternatives for that. It makes no sense,” he argued.
He further dismissed claims that technological limitations such as poor network coverage justify manual alternatives, insisting that such explanations are not convincing.
“INEC has been using electronic platforms to upload results for years without officially claiming that network challenges made it impossible. Even when there is temporary network failure, uploads can be completed once the network is restored,” he said.
On the differing versions of the amendment passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives, Okonkwo said both chambers should align with what Nigerians truly want — full electronic transmission without compromise.
“The House of Representatives should strengthen the provision by stating clearly that where electronic transmission fails, the election should be cancelled and rescheduled. That is the only way to protect the integrity of the process,” he said.
He maintained that there should be no compromise on transparent result transmission.
“This is not about technology replacing manual voting. It is about preserving the results exactly as recorded at polling units so that no one can alter the will of the people,” he added.
Okonkwo emphasised that credible elections are essential to democracy and warned that any provision that allows manual interference risks undermining citizens’ confidence in the electoral system.
“We are fighting for the freedom of Nigerians to choose their leaders. Anything that threatens that freedom must be resisted,” he said.
Manual Result Transmission Threatens Electoral Integrity, Says Kenneth Okonkwo
