Reps in rowdy session over motion to rescind ‘real-time’ clause in electoral act

The House of Representatives was thrown into a turbulent session this Tuesday, February 17, as lawmakers clashed over the Electoral Act Amendment Bill. The chaos began when a motion was introduced to rescind the earlier passage of the bill, which had mandated the “real-time” electronic transmission of election results.

The motion, moved by Francis Waive, Chairman of the Committee on Rules and Business, sought to align the House’s version of the bill with that of the Senate. This alignment would effectively remove the strict requirement for immediate digital result uploads to the IReV portal, a provision originally passed on December 23.

Tensions flared when Speaker Tajudeen Abbas put the motion to a voice vote to decide whether to revisit the bill. Despite the “nays” being noticeably louder than the “ayes,” the Speaker ruled that the “ayes” had carried the vote, sparking immediate outrage on the floor.

Dissatisfied lawmakers reacted with loud shouts of protest, causing the session to become increasingly rowdy. The disagreement highlights a deep divide within the chamber regarding the balance between digital transparency and the manual backup systems favored by the Senate.

Proponents of the rescission argue that technical infrastructure anomalies must be corrected to ensure administrative efficiency and legal clarity. They maintain that a technical committee has identified inconsistencies that require harmonizing the positions of both chambers of the National Assembly.

Conversely, opposition members and transparency advocates argue that removing the “real-time” mandate undermines public confidence in the 2027 general elections. The agitation in the chamber was so intense that proceedings were temporarily halted as members from various political blocs engaged in heated debates.

To prevent the situation from escalating further, Speaker Abbas eventually called for an executive, closed-door session to deliberate on the matter. The final decision on whether to recommit the bill to the Committee of the Whole remains pending as legislative tension continues to rise.