Electoral Act: Lawyer warns electronic transmission with manual backup institutionalises fraud
Nigeria's National Assembly passed the Electoral Amendment Act allowing electronic transmission of election results with manual collation as backup. Lawyer Maxwell Opara condemned this as a technical method to institutionalise electoral fraud. He argued it gives presiding officers discretion to determine communication failures, enabling manipulation between polling units and collation centres. Opara stated this creates opportunities for fraud, especially since courts still recognise paperwork as primary evidence. Civil society groups will continue resisting until the Act is corrected.