Dr Usman Bugaje accuses Senate under Godswill Akpabio of election manipulation, urging real-time electronic results for transparency
Islamic scholar and political activist, Dr Usman Bugaje, has accused the Nigerian Senate leadership under Senate President Godswill Akpabio of repeatedly undermining the nation’s democratic process.
Also read: SDP slams Senate resistance to electronic results transmission
Speaking on Arise Television’s Morning Show, Bugaje claimed the Senate has demonstrated a pattern of deception, poor legislative conduct, and obstruction in governance.
Bugaje said the ongoing push to amend the Electoral Act is critical to ensure transparency in elections, particularly through mandatory real-time electronic transmission of results.
He noted that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had already recommended this measure, which the House of Representatives has adopted, but alleged that the Senate has resisted implementation.
“The whole idea is to do a transparent election, and the best way is to make sure that the results are available electronically, immediately, so that everybody can see exactly where the votes are,” Bugaje said.
He further criticised the Senate for previous legislative failures, citing alleged irregularities in tax legislation and budgetary processes that led to confusion over multiple budgets, hampering economic planning.
“Businesses cannot plan because they don’t know which budget is going to be implemented,” he said.
Bugaje described the Senate leadership as a major obstacle to governance, calling for increased scrutiny of its actions.
“The Senate leadership is now the biggest problem of this country. Nigerians are not ready for anything less than real-time, transparent election results,” he added.
Also read: Peter Obi Joins Protest Against Senate Over Rejection of E-Transmission of Election Results
The activist emphasised that the amendment to the Electoral Act is necessary for clarity, accuracy, and precision in electoral processes, warning against attempts to intimidate citizens or compromise transparency.
