Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
The House of Representatives on Tuesday witnessed a rowdy session after nearly two hours of closed-door deliberations, as lawmakers revisited the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2025 and insisted on a clause-by-clause consideration of the controversial legislation ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The House had earlier resolved to rescind its December 2025 passage of the bill to correct inconsistencies and unintended consequences identified by a harmonisation committee comprising leaders of both chambers, members of the conference committee, clerks of the Senate and House of Representatives, and legal experts from the National Assembly’s Directorate of Legal Services.
Moving the motion for rescission under Order Nine, Rule 6 of the Standing Orders, Francis E. Waiwe explained that the exercise was aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s electoral framework by ensuring fairness, inclusivity, administrative efficiency, and boosting public confidence in the process.
Following the adoption of the motion, the House dissolved into the Committee of the Whole, presided over by the Deputy Speaker, to consider the bill in detail.
Tempers flared when the Deputy Speaker initially attempted to take the report in bulk rather than clause by clause.
This drew loud protests from lawmakers, who insisted that, given the far-reaching implications of the amendments for the 2027 elections, each provision must be individually debated and voted upon.
The uproar forced a brief halt in proceedings, after which the Deputy Speaker agreed to subject the bill to clause-by-clause consideration.
During deliberations, lawmakers adopted Clause 60(3), which provides for both real-time electronic transmission and manual transmission of election results.
The provision, however, sparked intense debate. Bamidele Salam moved a motion seeking the deletion of the manual transmission option, arguing that its retention could weaken the credibility of the electoral process and stall technological advancement.
The motion was seconded by Kingsley Chinda.
When the matter was subjected to a voice vote, the “nays” carried the day, effectively defeating the proposal and retaining both manual and electronic transmission of results in the amended Electoral Act.
