#FixPolitics has hailed the victory Nigerians recorded in the resolution by the Senate on Tuesday, October 12, 2021, which allows the Independent National Electoral Commission to freely determine the mode of transmission of results during elections, whether electronically or manually.
The group made this known in a statement, on Thursday, signed by Coordinating Co-Chair, Constitutional, Political and Electoral Reforms, Prof Remi Sonaiya, and Executive Director, Anthony Ubani.
“We consider this reversal of the Senate’s earlier resolution, which subjected INEC’s power to transmit election results electronically to the approval of the Nigerian Communications Commission and the National Assembly, as a major step towards the actualisation of Nigerians’ desire for elections that are transparent, free and fair,” the group stated.
The citizens-led research-based movement designed to structurally reform politics in Africa noted, specifically, that the Senate had amended Clause 52(2) of the Electoral Bill to read, “Subject to Section 63 of this Bill, voting at an election and transmission of results under this Bill shall be in accordance with the procedure determined by the Commission, which may include electronic voting.”
The group had made presentations at the various public hearings held by both chambers of the National Assembly on constitutional and electoral reforms, along with other advocacy efforts.
“#FixPolitics is one of the civil society organisations, which demanded that the Nigerian legislature must amend the nation’s electoral laws to include the electronic transmission of election results.
“In particular, a petition was uploaded on the change.org platform inviting as many as one million citizens to append their signatures and demand for the electronic transmission of election results. The petition was endorsed by about 100 CSOs, non-governmental organisations and the Nigerian Bar Association,” part of the statement read.
Given that Nigeria practises representative democracy, #FixPolitics, which holds the ‘Office of the Citizen as the highest office in the land, expressed delight that the Senate realised that, as representatives of the people, their power derives from the people and, therefore, it is their duty to pass laws that reflect the will of the people.
The group urged Nigerians to continue to make their voices heard on issues, which bear directly on their well-being and that of their country.
It added, “An example is the demand that the Nigerian Constitution includes a provision for referendums, in which regard #FixPoliticshas already posted a petition on change.org.
“#FixPoliticswill not relent in its commitment to promote values-based leadership, advocating the realisation of empowered and engaged citizens and proposing structural reforms to electoral and constitutional processes, to engender good governance in Nigeria.
“We believe that more victories will be won for a truly democratic Nigeria, as citizens recognise and use their constitutional powers to elect and hold leaders accountable. Our country is on the move.”
