Protesters on Monday gathered at the entrance of the National Assembly in Abuja for the “Occupy National Assembly” demonstration, aimed at pressuring lawmakers over the electronic transmission of election results.
A heavy security presence, including personnel from the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigerian Army, and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, was deployed to the scene. Police have barricaded the entrance to the National Assembly to prevent protesters from entering the premises.
Members of civil society organisations, some African Democratic Congress (ADC) supporters, and women’s groups participated in the protest, which is expected to take place primarily at the gate. The demonstrators began their march from the Federal Secretariat toward the National Assembly.
Protesters insist that lawmakers explicitly include the phrase “real-time electronic transmission” in the proposed legislation, despite clarifications from the Senate that it has not rejected electronic transmission of results.
Background: Electoral bill controversy
The protests follow outrage over last week’s passage of the Electoral Act 2022 (Repeal and Reenactment) Amendment Bill 2026 by the Senate.
While passing the bill, the Senate did not approve the proposed amendment to Clause 60, Subsection 3, which would have made the electronic transmission of election results mandatory in real time. The rejected provision required presiding officers of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to transmit results from each polling unit to the IREV portal in real time, after the prescribed Form EC&A was signed and countersigned.
Instead, the Senate retained the existing provision of the Electoral Act, which states that: “The presiding officer shall transfer the results, including the total number of accredited voters and the results of the ballot, in a manner as prescribed by the Commission.”
Senate clarifies position
Senate President Godswill Akpabio explained over the weekend that the upper chamber did not reject electronic transmission but only removed the phrase “real-time” from the provision.
“All we said during discussion was that we should remove the word ‘real-time’ because if you say real-time, then in the event of network or grid failure, a court could challenge it. That was all we said,” Akpabio said. He emphasised that the decision was intended to give INEC flexibility in determining the mode of result transmission, taking into account technological and security challenges.
Former Senate President David Mark echoed the need for flexibility, urging the National Assembly to allow INEC to decide whether or not to transmit results electronically. The ADC also voiced support for electronic transmission of election results.
Emergency plenary scheduled
In the midst of the controversy, the Senate on Sunday announced it will hold an emergency plenary session on Tuesday, February 10, 2026.
In a notice signed by the Clerk of the Senate, Emmanuel Odo, lawmakers were directed to convene at the National Assembly complex on the instruction of Senate President Akpabio. No reason was provided for the emergency sitting, which comes amid ongoing debates over electronic transmission following the bill’s third reading.
Odo urged all senators to attend the session.
