Former chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Dr Sam Amadi, has called for the abolition of results collation centres in Nigeria, citing the need for a more transparent and efficient electoral process.
He made the call yesterday while delivering his keynote address during a virtual event organised by the National Association of Seadogs(Pyrates Confraternity), Sahara Deck, on “Election Management and Accountability in Nigeria: Issues and Way Forward.”
According to Amadi, the current system of results collation centres is vulnerable to manipulation and falsification of results.
“The manual process of collating results is prone to errors and tampering,” Amadi said. “By abolishing results collation centres, we can reduce the risk of electoral fraud and ensure that the results reflect the true will of the people.
“The problem with our elections has been with us for a long while, apart from the fact that political parties have been largely ethno-religious. We now have political parties that lack clear ideologies.”
He added that the president should be stripped of the power to appoint the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) chairman.
“You need to take away the power of appointing the INEC chairman from the president. So long as the president continues to appoint the INEC chairman, elections will always be flawed.”
Amadi stated.
Also speaking, veteran journalist Jimi Disu, who was the Lead Discussant, said, “It is essential that stakeholders engage in a constructive dialogue about how to improve the electoral process and ensure that the results reflect the people’s true will.
“All of you know the famous phrase, “Go to court.” With the experience of what we saw in past elections, I don’t see anything changing in 2027 if reforms are not carried out in our electoral system.”
