The erstwhile governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deploy electronic voting and real-time transmission of results for the 2027 general elections, stressing that persistent electoral malpractices have worsened citizens’ apathy towards exercising their constitutional rights.
El-Rufai, who spoke on Saturday as Special Guest at the Odenigbo Lectures organised by the Catholic Archdiocese of Owerri, Imo State, argued that INEC has sufficient time to acquire and deploy electronic voting infrastructure nationwide.
“Can we not agree to say farewell to electoral malfeasance and any appearance of it by adopting electronic voting and real-time transmission of results to collation points without interference?
I do not see any compelling argument or unbridgeable barrier to adopting electronic voting and transmission of results for the 2027 elections,” he said.
The former governor recalled that Kaduna State successfully adopted electronic voting in its local government elections in 2018 and 2021, stressing that the system reduced manipulation and ensured fairness, even when the ruling party lost in some councils.
He lamented that voter turnout in presidential elections has been in steady decline since 2007, with less than 30 percent participation recorded in 2023, compared to over 60 percent in 2003. According to him, this consistent apathy signals alienation and fragility in Nigeria’s democracy.
El-Rufai also recommended that INEC adopt machines capable of:
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Integrating simultaneous voter identification and verification.
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Providing a paper trail of votes at polling units.
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Automatically shutting down at the close of voting.
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Printing polling unit results for party agents, presiding officers, media, and security agencies.
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Seamlessly transmitting results to central collation points.
He stressed that Nigeria’s political culture must shift from mere “arithmetic for power” to a genuine commitment to governance and problem-solving.
“There is an urgent need for our current and prospective office holders to focus not just on an arithmetic of power, but on a national programme that addresses and solves societal problems,” El-Rufai concluded.