By Nathaniel Zaccheus, Abuja
The Senate on Thursday sought to clear widespread misconceptions, stressing that the electronic transmission of election results in real time does not constitute e-voting, and that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) currently lacks the capacity to conduct e-voting in Nigeria.
Speaking on Arise News Channel, Senator Adeniyi Adegbonmire, Chairman of the Senate Ad-hoc Panel reviewing the 2026 Electoral Bill, explained that the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) “is not an e-voting platform, but a portal to publicise election results already counted and declared manually at polling units.”
Adegbonmire, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, said the misconception had been fuelled by misreporting and deliberate misrepresentation.
“IReV is software developed by INEC to display results after they have been manually collated and signed off in Form EC8A by presiding officers and polling agents,” he stated.
He clarified that the Senate had not rejected the use of IReV for the 2027 general elections, but that its role is strictly limited to the real-time publication of results, not vote casting.
“Real-time transmission can only happen if INEC adopts an e-voting system. For now, INEC does not have that capability. Maybe in two or three years, e-voting could be possible, but as of today, it is not in place,” he said.
The lawmaker highlighted that no legislative change could alter how IReV operates.
“Whether we call it upload, transfer, or transmission, IReV will function as it was configured. You must manually record the results before uploading or transmitting them. Vote counting remains entirely manual.”
Adegbonmire further explained the logistical challenges of nationwide elections, citing Ondo State as an example, where election materials must be transported days in advance, and some polling units are only accessible after long travel, sometimes by boat.
This means voting and result uploads naturally occur at different times across the country.
“This is why you will not see how you voted on IReV—it is not an e-voting platform,” he said.
He also cautioned media outlets on accurate reporting, warning that misrepresenting the timing or nature of results transmission could spark unnecessary controversy.
“If someone sees a result uploaded at 7:00 p.m., but the election in that area concluded at 2:00 p.m., assumptions of rigging may arise. The media must report responsibly.”
The clarifications come as the Senate seeks to harmonise divergent views and address grey areas identified in the 2026 Electoral Bill, ahead of the 2027 elections.
