Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, has blamed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for failing to upload election results on its iREV portal, as it had promised Nigerians.
Adegboruwa made this statement in reaction to the judgment of the Supreme Court, which upheld the victory of President Bola Tinubu in the February 25 presidential election.
He said; “The Supreme Court held that failure by INEC to upload election results on iREV leads to loss of public confidence in the electoral process.
“The Court however held that such failure will not lead to the nullification of election results. The judgment is sound in law and accords with the relevant statutes on the issue.
“What then is the penalty for the electoral umpire that failed Nigerians upon its voluntary undertaking? Because INEC is still busy assuring Nigerians that future election results will be transmitted electronically.”
He also called for an amendment to the Electoral Act 2022.
“It is left for the National Assembly to amend the Electoral Act 2022 to give us transparent elections. We cannot continue in this fashion.
“Presently, INEC has continued to assure Nigerians that the off-cycle elections for Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi governorship elections will be conducted electronically and the results uploaded on the INEC iREV portal.
“The use of technology is to prevent manipulation of election results. I urge INEC to help Nigeria by keeping its guidelines and public statements and undertakings,” he said.
