Human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has asserted that the majority of Nigeria’s elected officials would lose their positions if elections were conducted in a truly transparent manner.
Sowore made the remark while reacting to the ongoing debate surrounding recent amendments to the Electoral Act, particularly the provision allowing both electronic transmission and manual collation of election results.
Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, he argued that resistance to full electoral transparency stems from fear among political officeholders that credible elections could threaten their seats.
According to him, claims that poor internet connectivity necessitates manual collation are unfounded and merely serve as justification to retain loopholes in the electoral process.
He maintained that if transparency is fully enforced, as much as 90 per cent of lawmakers and other elected officials may not return to office.
The activist also criticised the Senate’s decision to retain manual collation as a backup option, describing it as a calculated move that could allow a return to practices that undermine public confidence in elections.
Sowore further expressed dissatisfaction with the Independent National Electoral Commission’s IREV system, which he described as outdated, and called for Nigeria to adopt a full electronic voting system.
Drawing comparisons with India, he noted that the country successfully manages elections involving hundreds of millions of voters through electronic voting, with minimal post-election disputes.
He added that if Nigerians can conduct sensitive financial transactions electronically, the country should also be able to implement secure electronic voting that allows citizens to cast their ballots remotely.
