Electoral Act: Stop constant lamentation, unwarranted outrage, Presidency tells opposition

By Johnbosco Agbakwuru

The Presidency has cautioned the opposition political parties to stop constant lamentation and unwanted outrage against the Electoral Act and the All Progressives Congress, APC, government.

The Presidency said the opposition, particularly the African Democratic Congress, ADC, has turned irresponsible political statements into an art form, all in a bid to attract cheap headlines and mislead the public.

In a statement Thursday night, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said: “Some prominent opposition figures, led by the ADC and NNPP, gathered in Abuja today and made reckless, spurious allegations against President Bola Tinubu and the APC-led Federal Government.

“The opposition, particularly the ADC, has turned irresponsible political statements into an art form, all in a bid to attract cheap headlines and mislead the public.

“Working in cahoots with some civil society groups, the opposition has waged a relentless war of disinformation against the National Assembly and the administration, making false allegations in a bid to impose their will on Nigerians and the legislature, the arm of government constitutionally empowered to make laws for the country’s good governance.

“In response to the realities of our country, the National Assembly enacted an amendment to the Electoral Act that allows for the real-time transmission of election results and the use of Form EC8A as a backup in the event of network failure. The opposition’s claim that Form EC8A creates a loophole for manipulation is illogical and a needless tantrum by those who should know better.

“Any reasonable Nigerian understands that network glitches are a real issue. The 2026 Electoral Act does not prohibit real-time transmission; it simply stipulates that if transmission fails, the result recorded on Form EC8A shall be deemed valid.

“Moreover, the role of IReV (INEC Results Viewing Portal) must not be misunderstood by the opposition. IReV is not a collation centre; it is a platform for uploading results for public viewing. The primary source for validating election results remains Form EC8.

“During their press conference, opposition parties also rejected the use of direct primaries as a means of selecting party candidates.

“We find it perplexing why the opposition is crying over the inclusion of direct primaries and consensus voting, rather than the corrupt delegate system they prefer. The opposition should be grateful to the National Assembly for removing delegate-based primaries and restoring party ownership to its members.

“No aspirant should fear participation by party members in the primaries. This is how candidates are picked by party members in the United States, where we borrowed the presidential system of government.

“The opposition’s claim that the National Assembly ignored Nigerians’ wishes is a total falsehood. The NASS did not ignore the public. For two years, according to the Senate majority leader, the NASS listened to various stakeholders, technical experts, and millions of Nigerians who expressed their views on the risk of technical failure that could invalidate the entire election.

“A recurring refrain from the disorganised opposition is the false allegation that President Tinubu aims to turn Nigeria into a one-party state. Such cheap shots reveal their hollowness and lack of reason.

“Nigeria is a vibrant multiparty democracy, with more than a dozen registered parties, including ADC and NNPP. The opposition should stop exaggerating the effects of the new Electoral Act. Their inability to organise and their tendency to blame others for their own disorganisation and unpreparedness are evident.

“President Tinubu is a democrat—an opposition leader who, alongside like-minded individuals, led the charge to defeat the PDP in 2015.

“Contrary to their deliberate misinformation designed to incite the populace, the new Electoral Act, signed by President Tinubu, is a significant improvement over the repealed law, closing loopholes the opposition leaders sought to exploit for manipulation.

“In summary, the opposition is merely crying foul because the rules of the game have been adjusted to prevent manipulation, such as result hacking, which they have allegedly perfected.

“Rather than this constant lamentation and unwarranted outrage, ADC and NNPP leaders should spend more time on introspection and fix their own mess.”