Former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Attahiru Jega has berated the National Assembly for excluding electronic transfer of results during the review of the Electoral Amendment Act (2010).
During an appearance on a programme on Channels Television on Sunday, Jega opined that the use of electronic voting without the electronic transmission of results is counterproductive.
He, however, urged the federal lawmakers to ensure that the Electoral Amendment Bill (2021) is appropriately amended before being passed.
He said: “You can’t permit INEC on one hand to use electronic voting and not use electronic transmission of results because usually, they go as a package.
“Once there is a robust software and hardware for doing so, it now brings efficiency, transparency and real time ability to see the result as they are transmitted from the polling unit to a National Collation Centre.”
Jega asserted that the digitised electoral system in Nigeria will improve the integrity of future elections.
He, however, cautioned against rushing the system due to many challenges facing the country.
He said: “I will urge that we make haste slowly. There is no doubt that if electronic voting is done appropriately, it will go a long way in improving the integrity of our elections.
“There are so many challenges in our country. For one to be able to do effective, thorough electronic voting, you need the infrastructure, software and associated support infrastructure. For example, stability of electricity, extensive network coverage and robust internet facilities.”
