Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has raised fresh concerns over Nigeria’s electoral framework, warning that failure to amend the Electoral Act 2022 could severely undermine the credibility of the 2027 general elections, news.ng reports.
In a post on his X handle on Thursday, Atiku described the 2023 general elections as deeply flawed, attributing the outcome largely to weaknesses in the existing electoral law.
According to him, “A major setback to the 2023 elections is the loopholes in the Electoral Act 2022 that paved the way for the brazen rigging of that election, and the near-impossibility of petitioners to advance their cases in the courts.”
The former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stressed that meaningful reform of the legal framework governing elections is critical if Nigeria hopes to avoid a repeat of the controversies that trailed the last polls.
“It is imperative that if the mistakes of the 2023 election are to be corrected, the legal instrument for the conduct of the 2027 and subsequent future elections needs to be reviewed,” he said.
Atiku, however, accused the National Assembly—particularly the Senate—of deliberately stalling the amendment process.
“But as things stand, it has become obvious that the Senate is determined to frustrate the passage of amendments to the 2022 Electoral Act,” he stated.
He also referenced a recent investigative report by the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), describing it as a damning assessment of the legislature’s handling of the issue.
“The recent report by FIJ serves as both an indictment of the Senate and a timely call for legislative responsibility,” Atiku noted.
Emphasising the stakes involved, the 79-year-old politician warned that the integrity of the next general elections depends largely on the speed and sincerity of legislative action.
“The credibility of the 2027 general elections hinges on the urgency with which the Senate treats this crucial bill,” he said.
Atiku, who contested in the 1993 presidential primaries on the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), concluded by urging lawmakers to act decisively, warning that any further delay could amount to a calculated effort to compromise the democratic process.
“It is, therefore, imperative that the Senate finalises the amendments and ensures the updated law governs the conduct of the 2027 elections. Anything short of this is a deliberate attempt to rig the election long before the ballots are cast.”
