Rita Odafe
Atiku Abubakar, the 2023 presidential candidate for the Peoples Democratic Party, has urged the National Assembly to promptly reassess the existing electoral laws and procedures in Nigeria.
He believes this reform is crucial for increasing the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of the nation’s electoral system.
In a statement made on Monday, the former Vice President referenced Ghana’s recent elections as a benchmark for the necessary adjustments that would clarify the electoral process.
Abubakar stressed that the National Assembly must amend the laws to empower the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct elections that are transparent, efficient, and credible.
He pointed out that the quick release of election results in Ghana highlights the significance of utilizing advanced technology for elections.
His statement included: “The recent presidential election in Ghana serves as a crucial reminder for INEC and the National Assembly about the necessity to reform our electoral procedures to enhance efficiency, transparency, and credibility, aligning them with global best practices. INEC must adopt technology to facilitate this transformation.”
The PDP leader insisted that any methods permitting manual election processes or obstructing real-time result uploads to the IREV system should be eliminated, suggesting that elections failing to meet these technological criteria should be deemed invalid.
“There should be no reason for officials to conduct elections manually or to suggest that results cannot be uploaded in real time on the IREV. Any election that does not adhere to technological standards should be rendered null and void,” he asserted.
