Engineers Back Real-Time Electronic Transmission of Election Results Nationwide
The Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) has thrown its weight behind the real-time electronic transmission of election results across the country, describing it as a crucial reform needed to enhance transparency, efficiency and public confidence in Nigeria’s electoral process.
The position was stated on Friday by the President of the Society, Engr. Ali Alimasuyi Rabiu, amid ongoing debate over the use of technology in elections.
The engineers’ endorsement comes in the wake of the Nigerian Senate’s decision in February 2026 to reject a proposal that sought to make the instant electronic upload of results from polling units to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) results portal mandatory.
Lawmakers had cited challenges such as poor internet penetration in rural areas, cybersecurity risks, unreliable power supply and the possibility of legal disputes arising from technical failures as reasons for opposing compulsory real-time transmission.
However, the NSE disagreed, arguing that these concerns should not override the long-term benefits of adopting modern digital election systems. The Society noted that the continued reliance on physical movement of result sheets exposes the electoral process to manipulation, loss and alteration during transportation over long distances.
According to the engineers, electronic transmission protected by encryption and digital authentication would significantly reduce human interference while safeguarding the integrity of results. They added that real-time uploads would also drastically cut the time taken to collate and announce election outcomes, which often runs into several days under the current manual system.
The Society further stated that existing communication technologies, including mobile broadband and satellite connectivity, could be deployed to address network challenges in remote areas of the country. It also pointed out that digital records help eliminate errors that frequently occur when figures are repeatedly copied at multiple collation stages.
The engineers said electronic systems are capable of creating permanent digital audit trails, enabling political parties, election observers and institutions to independently verify results. Beyond improving credibility, they argued that electronic transmission would, in the long run, reduce election costs by lowering expenditure on printing, logistics and large collation teams.
The NSE maintained that scalable digital platforms can efficiently manage data from Nigeria’s more than 176,000 polling units, with built-in backup options for areas experiencing unstable network coverage.
Drawing on international experiences, the Society noted that several countries that adopted electronic result management have recorded improvements in the speed and credibility of their elections. It stressed that Nigeria already possesses a growing technological base capable of supporting secure real-time transmission, provided there is adequate investment and the right safeguards.
The engineers concluded that challenges relating to cybersecurity, power supply and network limitations are technical issues with practical engineering solutions, warning that continued dependence on manual processes would only prolong electoral disputes and erode public trust in democratic outcomes.
They reaffirmed their full support for making real-time electronic transmission of election results mandatory nationwide as part of Nigeria’s electoral framework.
