Rowdy session as Senate approves 2026 electoral act amendment
The Senate of Nigeria on Tuesday passed the Electoral Act, 2022 (Repeal and Re-Enactment) Bill, 2026, after a tense and heated plenary marked by sharp disagreements over key provisions.
Proceedings were briefly disrupted during clause-by-clause consideration of the bill when Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe demanded a division on Clause 60.
Presiding over the session, Senate President Godswill Akpabio initially indicated that the request for division had been withdrawn. However, opposition lawmakers objected, insisting the matter was still valid.
Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, citing Order 52(6), argued that it would be out of order to revisit a matter already ruled upon by the Senate President. His position sparked further uproar, including a brief verbal clash between Senator Sunday Karimi and Abaribe.
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In a bid to restore calm, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele reminded lawmakers that he had moved a motion for rescission, which nullified earlier decisions on the affected provisions. He maintained that Abaribe’s call for division aligned with the rescission motion.
Akpabio, however, suggested that the demand was an attempt to publicly register a position. He eventually upheld the point of order, prompting Abaribe to formally move his motion under Order 72(1).
Abaribe objected specifically to Clause 60(3), which permits manual transmission of election results in the event of network failure. He argued that Form EC8A should not serve as the sole basis for collation if electronic transmission fails and pushed for the removal of the proviso allowing manual transmission.
During the division, senators were directed to stand according to their positions on retaining or rejecting the clause.
READ ALSO: Electoral Act Amendment bill sails through second reading in Senate
Debate also extended to Clause 28, with lawmakers expressing concern that the scheduling of the 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections could coincide with the Ramadan period, potentially affecting voter turnout, logistics, stakeholder participation, and the overall credibility of the process.
The Senate further addressed drafting discrepancies in the bill’s Long Title and multiple clauses, including cross-referencing errors and numbering inconsistencies.
Despite the intense deliberations and rowdy exchanges, the upper chamber ultimately passed the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, 2026.
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