Abuja: The Presidency on Thursday cautioned opposition parties against what it described as disinformation regarding the amended Electoral Act 2026 and the APC-led Federal Government. Presidential spokesperson, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, disclosed this in a statement titled ‘Opposition parties should stop constant lamentation and unwarranted outrage against the Electoral Act and the APC government’.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Onanuga stated that some opposition figures, including members of the ADC and NNPP, have made allegations against President Bola Tinubu and the APC-led Federal Government. He described the claims as misleading and aimed at discrediting the National Assembly and the administration.
Onanuga explained that the amended law provides for real-time transmission of election results, with Form EC8A serving as a backup in the event of network failure. He emphasized that the 2026 Electoral Act does not prohibit real-time transmission but stipulates that if transmission fails, the result recorded on Form EC8A shall be deemed valid.
He further clarified that the IReV portal is not a collation centre but a platform for uploading results for public viewing. The presidency also defended the inclusion of direct primaries and consensus options for selecting party candidates, asserting that the removal of delegate-based primaries would strengthen internal democracy and return ownership of parties to their members.
Onanuga refuted the opposition’s claims that the National Assembly ignored Nigerians’ wishes, stating that the National Assembly engaged stakeholders and experts over two years before passing the amendment. He dismissed allegations that the administration was pursuing a one-party state, asserting that Nigeria remains a vibrant multi-party democracy with more than a dozen registered parties.
He urged the opposition parties to desist from what he termed constant lamentation and unwarranted outrage over the new law.