The Senate has defended the recent amendments to the Electoral Act, insisting that the changes were made in the overall interest of Nigerians and after careful deliberations.
Speaking on Tuesday on Channels Television’s Politics Today, the spokesperson of the Senate, Yemi Adaramodu, said the National Assembly did not approach the amendment process lightly.
“Anyone who loves Nigeria will know that what we have done today is the best for Nigeria,” Adaramodu said.
He dismissed criticisms trailing the amendments, adding that lawmakers were not influenced by public pressure.
“We don’t play to the gallery. Then the minor minority that are so melodramatic about it, we don’t look at them to make laws because principles of lawmaking are not just something like eating amala,” the Ekiti South senator said.
The Senate on Tuesday amended the Electoral Act to allow the electronic transmission of election results, while making provisions for technical challenges that may arise during elections.
The decision marked a reversal of the chamber’s earlier position, in which it rejected the compulsory electronic transmission of results from polling units to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Result Viewing Portal.
The earlier stance had triggered criticism from opposition figures, civil society groups and other stakeholders.
However, during an emergency plenary on Tuesday, the upper chamber approved electronic transmission of results as part of the electoral process, although without the inclusion of the phrase “real-time”.
The lawmakers further resolved that where internet connectivity fails, Form EC8A would remain the primary document for result collation.
Defending the amendment, Adaramodu said the legislative process was thorough and deliberate.
“We don’t do something that we just wake up just on impulse and just say something, and then you say you have made a law. You have to be very thorough. You have to be very painstaking,” he said.
“It must be so painstakingly done that the flaws must not be so latent to the extent that it can repudiate whatever good trust that Nigerians will have in our system.”
Adaramodu also said the differing opinions generated by the amendment process reflected a healthy democracy.
“Like we know in Nigeria, and everywhere else where democracy is thriving — and we want democracy to thrive — there will be shades of opinions. There will be shadows of ideas, and then we have to listen to all,” he added.
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