PDP governors insist on e-transmission of election results

The Peoples Democratic Party Governors’ Forum has insisted on electronic transmission of election results, saying it will guarantee free and fair poll.
The Senate had passed The Electoral Act Amendment Bill to empower the Nigerian Communications Commission to determine the electronic transmission of election results, while the House of Representatives adopted the use of technology “where practicable”.
Addressing journalists in Bauchi after the PDP governors met on Monday, Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, said the electronic transmission of election results must be part of the country’s laws.
“On the electoral act amendment bill, the governors identified the need for a free, fair and credible elections in the country and called on the national assembly to entrench electronic transmission of results of elections in the nation’s electoral jurisprudence,” Tambuwal said.
The governor urged the Independent National Electoral Commission, NCC, and Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF), among other government agencies, to deploy the necessary infrastructure that would facilitate the electronic transmission of election results.
“The governors noted that the method was prone to massive rigging and such other electoral malpractices as evidenced in the 2018 APC primary elections. Political parties should be allowed to decide their method of conduct of primaries as such would promote internal democracy,” he said.
The governors also called on Nigerians “to use the opportunity of the PDP e-registration exercise which will kick off soon, to register as PDP members, while PDP members should update their membership electronically”.