Confidence in our democracy must be bebuilt, says Tinubu as he signs electoral act 2026 into law
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has signed the Electoral Act 2026 (Amendment) Bill into law, declaring that rebuilding public confidence in Nigeria’s democratic process remains a top priority.
The bill, which was passed by the National Assembly after months of deliberations and amendments, was signed at the State House on Wednesday around 5:00 pm in the presence of principal officers of the legislature.
Speaking at the ceremony, Tinubu commended lawmakers for what he described as “solid brainstorming discussions” geared toward strengthening democratic governance and ensuring national stability.
“The essence of democracy is to have very solid brainstorming discussions committed to national development and nation building, the stability of the nation,” the president said.
He stressed that the most critical aspect of the amended law is the effective management of the electoral process to prevent confusion or the disenfranchisement of citizens.
“What is crucial is the fact that you manage the process to the extent there will be no confusion, no disenfranchisement of Nigerians; and we are all going to see democracy flourish,” he stated.
Tinubu noted that no matter how advanced an electoral system may be, its success ultimately depends on the integrity of those who operate it.
“No matter how good a system is, it’s managed by the people, promoted by the people, and result is finalised by the people,” he said.
“For final results, you are not going to be talking to the computer. You are going to be talking to human beings who announce the results.”
On the issue of real-time electronic transmission of results, the president urged stakeholders to realistically assess Nigeria’s technological capacity, particularly broadband infrastructure, warning against potential glitches.
“When you look at the crux of various agreements, maybe Nigeria should question our broadband capability. How technically are we today? How technically will we be tomorrow?” he asked.
He reaffirmed that voting in Nigeria remains fundamentally manual, with citizens physically present at polling units to cast their ballots, which are sorted and counted manually before results are entered into official forms for transmission.
“Essentially, the transmission of that manual result is what we’re looking at, and we need to avoid glitches,” he added.
Expressing optimism about Nigeria’s democratic future, Tinubu said the country would continue to nurture its democracy in pursuit of prosperity and stability.
“Nigeria will be there. We will flourish. We will continue to nurture this democracy for the fulfilment of our dream for prosperity and stability of our country,” he said.
