According to the AAC, the rejection of mandatory electronic transmission reflects “an outright disregard for electoral integrity” and exposes the political elite’s determination to preserve avenues for rigging and post-election fraud.
The African Action Congress (AAC) has condemned the Nigerian Senate for passing an electoral bill that rejects key provisions aimed at ensuring free, fair and credible elections, accusing the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of deliberately sustaining a corrupt electoral system.
In a statement signed by Rex I. Elanu, National Publicity Secretary of the African Action Congress, the party criticised the Senate’s refusal to make electronic transmission of election results from polling units to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s Result Viewing Portal (IREV) mandatory, describing the decision as a calculated move to entrench opacity and electoral manipulation.
According to the AAC, the rejection of mandatory electronic transmission reflects “an outright disregard for electoral integrity” and exposes the political elite’s determination to preserve avenues for rigging and post-election fraud.
The statement reads in part, "The African Action Congress (AAC) unequivocally condemns the decision of the Nigerian Senate to pass an electoral bill that deliberately rejects key provisions required to guarantee free, fair, and credible elections in Nigeria.
"By refusing to make the electronic transmission of election results from polling units to INEC’s Result Viewing Portal (IREV) mandatory, the Senate has openly chosen opacity over transparency. This decision reflects an outright disregard for electoral integrity and exposes a calculated attempt by the political elite to preserve avenues for manipulation, rigging, and post-election fraud.”
The party also faulted the Senate for rejecting stiffer criminal penalties for the buying and selling of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and votes, a practice it described as a direct assault on the sovereignty of the Nigerian people.
The AAC said that PVC and vote trading reduce citizens’ votes to commodities, adding that while lawmakers increased fines for vote buying, they deliberately avoided adopting stringent punitive measures that could serve as real deterrents.
"Equally troubling is the Senate’s rejection of harsher penalties for the buying and selling of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and Votes,” the party said.
“PVC and vote trading is a direct assault on the sovereignty of the Nigerian people, reducing citizens’ votes to commodities. Instead of criminalising this practice with severe punitive measures, the Senate opted for hypocrisy, merely increasing fines for vote buying while refusing to adopt stringent, deterrent sanctions that could actually curb this electoral crime.”
The party alleged that the decision of the APC-led Senate confirms that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the executive arm of government and the National Assembly are not interested in genuine electoral reforms.
"These actions confirm what we in the AAC and many other Nigerians already know: that Bola Ahmed Tinubu, his APC-led Executive and National Assembly are not interested in electoral reforms that strengthen democracy or empower Nigerian electorates,” it said.
“They are rather committed to protecting a corrupt system that sustains their hold on power through vote buying, voter suppression, and institutionalised fraud.”
AAC insisted that credible elections in Nigeria are impossible without mandatory electronic transmission of results and strict criminal sanctions for all forms of electoral malpractice, including PVC trading and vote buying, which it accused the APC of exploiting.
"AAC maintains that credible elections in Nigeria are impossible without mandatory electronic transmission of results and strict criminal penalties for all forms of electoral malpractice, including PVC trading and vote buying, which the APC is notorious for. Anything short of this is an invitation to chaos, illegitimacy, and the continued erosion of public trust in the democratic process," it said.
The party warned that anything short of these reforms amounts to “an invitation to chaos, illegitimacy and the continued erosion of public trust in the democratic process.”
Calling for resistance, AAC urged Nigerians, civil society organisations and pro-democracy groups to reject what it described as a “legislative betrayal” and intensify the struggle for genuine electoral reform.
"We call on Nigerians, civil society organisations, and pro-democracy forces to reject this legislative betrayal and intensify the struggle for genuine electoral reform. Democracy cannot be negotiated away by self-serving lawmakers.
"AAC will continue to stand with the Nigerian people in resisting bad governance, demanding accountability, and fighting for a political system where every vote truly counts," the statement added.