Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, on Monday joined hundreds of protesters at the National Assembly Complex, Abuja, to oppose the Senate’s decision to remove “real-time” electronic transmission of election results from the proposed Electoral Act Amendment Bill.
The protest, tagged “Occupy the National Assembly,” was organised by the Obidient Movement in collaboration with pro-democracy groups, who accused lawmakers of deliberately weakening Nigeria’s electoral framework ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The agitation followed last week’s passage of the Electoral Act 2022 (Repeal and Reenactment) Amendment Bill, 2026 by the Senate. Central to the controversy is the deletion of the phrase “real-time” from provisions relating to the electronic transmission of results—an action critics say creates loopholes for manipulation during collation.
Although the Senate has repeatedly clarified that it did not abolish electronic transmission of results, protesters insist that the absence of an explicit real-time requirement leaves room for post-poll interference.
Carrying placards bearing messages such as “Our Votes Must Count,” “No to Electoral Robbery,” and “Protect Democracy Now,” the demonstrators marched from the Federal Secretariat towards the National Assembly.
They were, however, stopped by heavily deployed security personnel comprising operatives of the Nigeria Police Force, Nigerian Army and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, who barricaded the main entrance of the complex.
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Addressing journalists at the protest ground, Obi warned against what he described as a gradual erosion of Nigeria’s democratic gains, stressing that credible elections are fundamental to national stability and development.
“We must dismantle this criminality and prove that we are now a nation that shows light in Africa,” Obi said.
His presence energised the crowd, many of whom regard him as a leading figure of the youth-driven political awakening witnessed during the 2023 general elections.
Speaking at the rally, National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement Worldwide, Dr. Yunusa Tanko, said the protest would continue until the National Assembly clearly reinstates 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 has historically undermined Nigeria’s elections, adding that electronic transmission was introduced to address such flaws following reforms after the 2011 and 2015 polls.
Nigeria’s push for electoral reforms intensified after the widely criticised 2007 general elections. Subsequent innovations—including the introduction of card readers in 2015 and the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) in 2022—were praised as milestones toward transparency, despite operational challenges.
Civil society organisations had also strongly advocated electronic transmission of results during deliberations leading to the passage of the 2022 Electoral Act, citing its potential to reduce human interference and restore public trust in the electoral process.
Another speaker at the protest, activist Randy Peters, accused the political elite of betraying democratic ideals and vowed that demonstrators would continue to occupy the National Assembly until their demands are met.
“Tomorrow, we will be back here until the Senate does the right thing. The June 12 struggle was about free and fair elections,” he said.
Invoking the spirit of the June 12, 1993 election—widely regarded as Nigeria’s freest and fairest Peters questioned why elected officials would resist reforms designed to guarantee credible outcomes.
“In 2027, our votes must count. That is the most important thing. Tomorrow, they will meet us here again,” he added