The Nigerian Civil Society Situation Room and the undersigned civil society organizations working to deepen electoral integrity in Nigeria have noted with concern two new features introduced by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the result management process. First, through its 2026 Regulations and Guidelines for the Conduct of Elections, INEC introduced an electronic EC8A on the BVAS as a part of a validation process that requires polling officials to input results scores into the e-EC8A on the BVAS. The regulations do not clearly state where the results are transferred to and what purpose they serve. Second, election results will undergo an unexplained backend validation step before appearing on the INEC Results Viewing Portal (IReV), a process that was jettisoned in the previous commission due to its potential for misuse and result manipulation.
Concerns and risks
1. Unexplained backend validation of transmitted results before publishing on the IReV raises significant transparency and accountability concerns. The backend validation is not visible to the public, polling agents or observers. The Commission is yet to provide clear explanation on what is validated, who undertakes the review, or how long it should take. As a result, the period between transmission and publication on IReV creates uncertainty and weakens public confidence in the integrity of the process.
2. The introduction of electronic EC8As (eEC8A) as part of a result validation process without adequate public or even technical justification is concerning. The Regulations do not clearly state where the results entered into the electronic EC8A are transmitted and what purpose they serve, particularly, as the 2026 Electoral Act provides that results shall be transmitted to the IReV. The introduction of the electronic EC8A means that four versions of the same polling-unit result may exist: the physical EC8A, the scanned image uploaded to IReV which also remains on the BVAS, and the electronically transmitted eEC8A. This creates unnecessary confusion especially because it is not clear what happens in the case of any discrepancy.
Recommendations
1. INEC should abolish the backend validation of transmitted election results before their publication on IReV or otherwise subject the validation process to public and independent scrutiny.
2. INEC should issue a results-transmission protocol that enables the public to understand the results-management process from end to end and provides for an independent assessment of the upgraded BVAS and IReV.
3. INEC should remove the electronic EC8A from the results-management process because of its potential for misuse and for generating intelligence that could facilitate further manipulation of elections. In particular, an electronic collation layer may provide advance information on electoral outcomes that compromised officials could exploit to influence the process. The forthcoming Osun election is a major test of the results-management process. The Commission should implement these recommendations as a demonstration of its commitment to transparency, accountability, and the integrity of the electoral process.
Signed.
1. Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room
2. Accountability Lab, Nigeria
3. Center for Media and Society (CEMESO)
4. Center for Journalism, Innovation and Development (CJID)
5. Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Center (CISLAC)
6. Dataphyte
7. ElectHer
8. International Press Center
9. Inclusive Friends Association
10. Nigerian Women Trust Fund
11. TAF Africa
12. TAP Initiative
13. The Kukah Centre
14. Yiaga Africa