Members of a joint committee of Nigeria’s National Assembly, the federal legislature in Africa’s most populous country, are expected to meet on Monday, February 16, 2026, to reconcile differences between separate versions of an Electoral Amendment Bill passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives.
The harmonisation process is designed to produce a single text that both chambers can approve before it is sent to Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu, for assent, in line with parliamentary procedure when lawmakers pass different versions of the same bill. The most contested issue is how election results should be transmitted electronically from polling units, a debate that has remained politically sensitive since Nigeria’s 2023 general election.
According to findings published on Thursday, February 12, 2026, the conference committee, drawn from both chambers, has been given one week to resolve disputed provisions, including clauses on the electronic transmission of results. A National Assembly source confirmed the schedule, saying, “It is taking place on Monday,” in a message.
Senator Seriake Dickson, who represents Bayelsa West in Bayelsa State in southern Nigeria’s Niger Delta region, said he was not on the conference committee but expected the meeting to hold on Monday. “I don’t know the actual date since I am not a member of the Conference Committee. But we are hoping it may take place next Monday,” he said.
Public attention has intensified because the legal framework for using technology in elections has been repeatedly contested in Nigeria, where the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the body that runs federal and state elections, introduced the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) to publish polling unit results. During the 2023 presidential vote, INEC faced widespread criticism for failing to upload results to IReV in real time, prompting civil society groups, opposition parties and some lawmakers to demand clearer statutory backing for electronic transmission ahead of the 2027 general election.
Okay News reports that lawmakers are trying to close legal gaps and reduce ambiguity that could undermine confidence in future elections. Senate President Godswill Akpabio has indicated that the harmonised bill would be transmitted to President Tinubu before the end of February 2026.
A separate source familiar with the talks said Senator Simon Lalong, who represents Plateau South in Plateau State in north-central Nigeria, had earlier cited Monday, February 16, 2026, for the committee meeting, adding that members may be excused from budget defence sessions to focus on the bill. In the House of Representatives, spokesperson Akin Rotimi said consultations had already begun, while committee members Sada Soli of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from Katsina State in northern Nigeria and Iduma Igariwey of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from Ebonyi State in south-eastern Nigeria said the meeting was likely, though not formally confirmed.
At the core of the dispute is the balance between mandatory electronic transmission and allowances for manual processes when technology fails. The House version backs real-time electronic transmission to IReV alongside physical collation. The Senate version, after internal debate, supports electronic transmission but also provides a fallback that makes signed result forms the primary basis for collation and declaration if electronic transmission becomes impossible.
The House also proposed other changes, including tightening rules on candidate withdrawal by requiring a sworn affidavit, and reducing the time limit for a specific election appeal tribunal to deliver judgments from 180 days to 150 days after a petition is filed.
Meanwhile, Senator Adeniyi Adegbonmire, who represents Ondo Central in Ondo State in south-western Nigeria and leads a Senate review panel on the bill, said in a television interview that real-time transmission should not be confused with electronic voting. He argued that IReV is used to publicise results that have been manually counted and declared, and that Nigeria’s elections still rely on manual vote counting, with technology used mainly for accreditation and publication.
Outside parliament, former Nigerian Bar Association president Olisa Agbakoba urged lawmakers to make real-time electronic transmission mandatory, arguing it would strengthen transparency and credibility. He also cited lessons from Nigeria’s June 12, 1993 election, remembered for its openness under the Option A4 system, and pointed to court rulings that have questioned the legal force of electronic transmission where the law is not explicit.
The outcome of Monday’s meeting is expected to shape the final text of Nigeria’s amended electoral law and signal how the National Assembly intends to address the role of technology in safeguarding the credibility of the 2027 polls.
