PLAC faults INEC over polling-unit results

Clement Nwankwo, Executive Director of the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), has faulted the position attributed to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the public announcement of polling-unit results, warning that restrictions could undermine electoral transparency ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Nwankwo also questioned the legal basis for INEC’s proposed use of electronic systems and artificial intelligence (AI) to verify election results before they are made public, insisting that the commission must operate within the powers conferred on it by law.

He spoke on Tuesday while expressing concerns about the preparations for the 2027 elections and the need for citizens, political parties and other stakeholders to protect the integrity of the electoral process during the 8th annual lecture of Just Friends Club in Abuja.

Recalling his experience in election observation and democracy advocacy since 1998, Nwankwo said polling-unit results should be announced at the polling units and made available to citizens and party agents to enable them to independently document the outcome of voting.

He said the position attributed to the INEC chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, discouraging the announcement of election outcomes at polling units was troubling because the electoral law provided for the announcement of results at that level.

Nwankwo recalled that during the 2015 general elections, he and other civil society actors had challenged a similar position attributed to a former national security adviser, arguing that voters should remain at polling units to document results and protect their votes.

He said citizens and political party agents should collect evidence of results as announced at polling units rather than depend solely on figures subsequently released through the collation process.

The PLAC director warned that the possibility of bias by election officials and disputes over results made independent documentation particularly important.

“There is always the possibility that the electoral management body will be biased. There is always the possibility that election officials will be biased. There is always the possibility that election results could be switched,” he said.

“But your ability to collect evidence at every opportunity is what stops election results sheets from being switched.”

He challenged political parties to establish effective structures for monitoring elections across the country, arguing that claims of popularity or victory would not be sufficient without agents present to document results.

“I do not think that any party is serious enough if you do not have agents in every polling unit,” he said.

Nwankwo added that parties disputing election outcomes must be prepared to produce evidence of what transpired at polling units, noting that election petitions frequently involve allegations that INEC uploaded results different from those recorded at the polling units.

On the proposed use of technology in election result management, Nwankwo questioned INEC’s reported plan to use electronic systems and AI to vet results before they are made public.

He argued that the commission must identify the specific legal provisions authorising such a process, insisting that technological innovation should not be used to introduce procedures that are not supported by the law.