Browsing by Author "JOHN AFOLABI OGEDENGBE AND ABDULHAFEEZ MOHAMMAD"

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    THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE IREV PORTAL IN NIGERIA’S ELECTORAL JURISPRUDENCE: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF SECTION 60 OF THE ELECTORAL ACT 2026 AND THE ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION OF ELECTION RESULTS
    (Faculty of Law, University of Port Harcourt, 2026) JOHN AFOLABI OGEDENGBE AND ABDULHAFEEZ MOHAMMAD
    The integration of technology into Nigeria's electoral process in 2023 exemplified by the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal, promised enhanced transparency in the collation and transmission of election results. Notwithstanding this promise, the legal status of electronically transmitted results has remained contentious, generating significant judicial and legislative controversy. This paper examines the evolution of section 60 of the Electoral Act, 2026 contrasting the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 with those of the Electoral Act (Amendment) 2026. It analyses the jurisprudence of Nigerian courts, with particular attention to recent Supreme Court decisions interpreting electronic result transmission and the legal effect of statutory provisos. A comparative analysis of the terms 'transmission' and 'transfer' is undertaken to demonstrate how seemingly minor legislative choices can fundamentally alter legal obligations. The paper further examines the mischief that the 2026 amendment sought to remedy, specifically, electoral fraud through post-poll result manipulation and critically evaluates whether the amendment achieves this purpose. It is argued that the proviso in section 60(3) of the Electoral Act 2026, by designating manually collated results as primary option in the event of technical failure, risks entrenching the very vulnerability the reform sought to eliminate. Drawing on case law and scholarly commentary, the paper concludes that while the statutory elevation of electronic transmission represents legislative progress, the proviso substantially undermines the reform. The paper concludes by recommending clearer legislation to support the legal validity of electronically transmitted election results in Nigeria