Prince Adewole Adebayo, a former Social Democratic Party (SDP) presidential candidate, has harshly condemned the recent changes to Nigeria’s Electoral Act that President Bola Tinubu signed into law, calling it “a setback for transparency and democratic integrity.”

Adebayo accused the federal government of prioritizing “loopholes over transparency by weakening provisions for the electronic transmission of election results” in a message he issued on his official X (previously Twitter) account, @Pres_Adebayo.

The SDP leader claims that although “electronic transmission has not been completely abolished, the new revisions to the 2022 Electoral Act make it discretionary rather than mandatory — a shift he believes could undermine the credibility of future elections.”

“I was in Abuja and witnessed the anger of the Nigerian people after the government approved revisions to the 2022 Electoral Act,” he continued.

“What ought to have been required real-time broadcasting has been left up to personal preference. That gap is significant.

He contended that making electronic transmission optional essentially reverts the system to manual collation as the standard procedure, raising the possibility of manipulation and undermining public confidence.

The practical default is to manually compile the findings when electronic transmission is not required.

“And trust in the process is damaged when results go through opaque channels,” he stated.

According to the SDP chairman, the signing of the modified law is “a blow against the very essence of Nigerian democracy,” and the administration is purposefully avoiding openness.

“It is unacceptable to remove the required electronic transmission since it makes it simpler to manipulate the results.

He said, “This administration is attacking the very democracy that generations of Nigerians fought so hard to secure.”

He added that the amendments are “a shameless attempt to remain in power” and accused President Tinubu of dishonoring the tradition of Nigeria’s democratic struggle.

Adebayo insisted that rather than eroding technological safeguards in the electoral process, Nigeria should be moving closer to fully computerized voting.

He also noted that Nigerians currently depend on technological systems for communication, banking, and business, and he questioned why the same level of trust shouldn’t extend to vote protection.

“When votes are sent in real time and transparently, a record is created. There is confirmation. He stated, “There is accountability.

Adebayo urged people and communities nationwide to keep calling for openness and justice in the voting process in spite of the new law.

“The law may have changed, but the demand for transparency has not,” he declared, promising to support Nigerians who think their nation “deserves better.”

Political players and civil society organizations have been debating the Electoral Act’s revisions. Critics have warned that the public’s confidence may be impacted by the lowering of electronic transmission regulations before to the general elections in 2027.