The Senate has fixed an emergency plenary for Tuesday, February 10, amid heightened public debate over the electronic transmission of election results.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Clerk of the Senate, Emmanuel Odo, announced that the session was convened at the instance of the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio.
The notice stated that the special sitting would take place at 12 noon in the Senate chamber.
“I am directed by His Excellency, the President of the Senate, Distinguished Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio, GCON, to inform all Distinguished Senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that an Emergency Sitting of the Senate has been scheduled.” the notice read.
“All distinguished senators are kindly requested to note this emergency sitting date and attend.”
The development follows mounting calls on the National Assembly to revisit Clause 60(3) of the Electoral Act amendment bill, which addresses the transmission of election results through electronic means.
Earlier, on Wednesday, February 4, the upper legislative chamber upheld the provision permitting electronic transmission of results as contained in the Electoral Act 2022.
During deliberations, senators declined proposals seeking real-time publication of results and a 10-year disqualification for individuals convicted of vote-buying. Instead, lawmakers chose to retain the current penalties of fines or imprisonment.
Several senators have since maintained that the amendment bill secured majority support within the chamber.
However, while the Senate reaffirmed electronic transmission, it stopped short of endorsing mandatory real-time uploads. Rather, it preserved the existing language in the 2022 law, which stipulates that results shall be transmitted in a manner as prescribed by the commission.
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