The Senate will on Tuesday (today) hold an emergency plenary session amid growing national outrage over its handling of amendments to the Electoral Act, particularly the controversial removal of the clause mandating real-time electronic transmission of election results.
The extraordinary sitting comes less than a week after the passage of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, 2026, and follows sustained pressure from civil society organisations, opposition figures, labour unions, professional bodies, regional leaders and a rapidly growing youth movement that has taken its protest directly to the National Assembly complex.
President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, is expected to preside over the session, which will be attended by 105 senators.
In the past six months, the Senate has lost two members—Senator Okechukwu Ezea of Enugu State and Senator Godiya Akwashiki of Nasarawa State—to death. Another lawmaker, Senator Jimoh Ibrahim, recently vacated his seat following his appointment as an ambassador-designate by President Bola Tinubu. These developments have reduced the number of serving senators from 109 to 106.
The emergency plenary was formally announced on Sunday in a statement signed by the Clerk of the Senate, Mr Emmanuel Odo.
“The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has directed the reconvening of plenary for an emergency sitting on Tuesday, February 10, 2026,” the statement said.
According to the notice, plenary is scheduled to commence at 12 noon.
The decision to reconvene follows intense public backlash over the Senate’s passage of the Electoral Act 2022 (Repeal and Re-enactment) Amendment Bill, 2026, which deleted the phrase “real-time” from provisions relating to the electronic transmission of election results.
The amendment has drawn sharp criticism from many Nigerians who fear it could weaken the credibility of elections by creating loopholes for post-poll manipulation.
Several senators, particularly members of the Harmonisation Committee, reportedly came under heavy pressure after their personal phone numbers circulated widely on social media. This reportedly triggered a flood of angry calls, threats and verbal attacks from citizens accusing them of undermining democracy. Some lawmakers were said to have switched off their phones to avoid further harassment.
“The reactions were unpredictable. Many were laying curses and asking them, ‘how do you sleep at night after this action?’” a National Assembly source disclosed.
Despite repeated assurances by Senate leaders that electronic transmission of results was not entirely rejected, public distrust has continued to grow. Critics argue that the removal of the words “real-time” introduces ambiguity that could be exploited to tamper with election outcomes.
As the controversy escalated, the Nigeria Labour Congress threatened nationwide protests and possible election boycotts if the Senate fails to take a clear and unambiguous stance on mandatory electronic transmission of results. The labour union accused the Senate of sowing confusion and eroding confidence in the electoral process through conflicting explanations.
Meanwhile, a newly formed coalition of political activists under the banner of the Movement for Credible Elections on Monday staged a mass protest in Abuja, tagged “Occupy NASS,” further intensifying pressure on the lawmakers ahead of the emergency plenary.
