A coalition of civil society organisations on Thursday, criticised what it described as hasty passage and assent to the Electoral Amendment Act 2026.
According to the coalition, the country just missed an opportunity for a transformative electoral reform that Nigeria requires and citizens truly deserved.
Recall that President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday, signed the Electoral Amemdment Act 2026 into law, making it a legal document for the conduct of the 2027 general elections.
The CSOs, ranging from the Centre for Media and Society, The Kukah Centre, the International Press Centre(IPC), ElectHer, Nigerian Women Trust Fund, TAF Africa and Yiaga Africa described Wednesday’s assent to the Act as representing the darkest day in Nigeria’s democracy.
They all noted that though the Act that has been enacted preserves important provisions from the 2022 framework, it however leaves dangerous loopholes unaddressed and introduces new barriers to political participation.
Reading out a joint communique on Thursday in Abuja, TAF Africa President, Jake Ekpelle said the amended act just passed by the President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu contains significant flaws that will undermine electoral integrity, entrench incumbency advantage and exclude millions of Nigerians from meaningful political participation.
Ekpelle said Civil society raised each of these issues with evidence based recommendations during the legislative process but was ignored partly because of failure of political will.
“We cannot ignore the deeply troubling manner in which the legislation was processed and passed. The speed and opacity, raise serious concerns about legislative transparency and the commitment of lawmakers to geniune electoral reform.
“At a time when public confidence in elections remains fragile, this law should have decisively strengthen transparency, eliminated ambiguities and deepened safeguards against manipulation. Instead it creates more vulnerabilities in the electoral process,” he stated.
Ekpelle noted that the period between the National Assembly’s passage of the Bill and the granting of Presidential assent, civil society organizations convened multiple protests and public engagements calling for critical safeguards to be preserved including real-time electronic transmission of results, downloadable voter cards, and the retention of established electoral timelines.
He lamented that these were not partisan demands; but were grounded in legal precedent, technical feasibility, and the imperative to protect electoral credibility ahead of 2027.
He said the decision of the Presidency to grant assent without addressing the substantive legal, technical, and democratic concerns raised by civil society, professional bodies, and even some members of the National Assembly signal a troubling prioritization of political expediency over electoral integrity.
Again he argued that Electoral reform should be guided by broad consultation and consensus, not compressed timelines and executive finality.
He warned that the assent to the 2026 Electoral Act is not the end of the reform process, but a beginning of the implementation phase and civil society will be present, vigilant and vocal at every stage.
The groups however outlined priorities it want the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to focus on, such aa issue a revised 2027 election timetable eithout delay.
Ekpelle said in light of the new 300-day notice requirement under the Electoral Act 2026, INEC must urgently publish a revised timetable and schedule for the 2027 general elections.
He noted that electoral timelines is essential for political parties, candidates, civil society, security agencies, and voters to prepare adequately.
“INEC must immediately issue clear and detailed regulations addressing:
The definition and threshold for IReV “communication failure,” including transparent verification procedures;
Standards for monitoring, observing, and certifying political party primaries;
Disability-inclusive voter registration procedures, ensuring full compliance with constitutional guarantees of equality and inclusion.
“Regulatory ambiguity at this stage will only invite disputes and litigation later.
Conduct a Nationwide IReV Transmission Simulation: INEC should organize a national simulation exercise of IReV electronic transmission across all 176,866 polling units, with independent observers present.
“The Commission must publish a comprehensive technical report detailing: Success and failure rates;
Geographical distribution of connectivity gaps; identified vulnerabilities; and Concrete remediation plans ahead of 2027,” Ekpelle stated.
Akin Rotimi, Spokesperson of the House of Representatives while defending the action of the legislature, said that due process for amending the law was followed in arriving at the passage, hence forwarding the document to the presidency for assent.
He disagreed with Ekpelle that Wednesday represents the darkest day in Nigeria’s democratic history, saying this is the first time that a genuine amendment is being introduced to the electoral act.
According to the lawmaker, protest staged by civil societies including members of NASS who disagreed on some areas of amendment by staging out walkouts was a normal thing in legislative processes which should not be misconstrued as being negative.