The Presidency has fired back at opposition parties over their rejection of the amended Electoral Act, accusing them of spreading disinformation and engaging in “constant lamentation and unwarranted outrage” against the administration of Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
In a State House press statement issued on February 26, 2026, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, described recent allegations by opposition figures—led by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP)—as “reckless” and “spurious.”
Onanuga said the opposition had gathered in Abuja to level what he termed unfounded accusations against the President and the APC-led Federal Government.
“The opposition, particularly the ADC, has turned irresponsible political statements into an art form, all in a bid to attract cheap headlines and mislead the public,” he said.
He further alleged that opposition parties were “working in cahoots with some civil society groups” in what he described as a “relentless war of disinformation” against the National Assembly and the administration.
According to him, the legislature acted within its constitutional mandate in amending the Electoral Act to address practical challenges observed in previous elections.
“In response to the realities of our country, the National Assembly enacted an amendment to the Electoral Act that allows for the real-time transmission of election results and the use of Form EC8A as a backup in the event of network failure,” Onanuga stated.
He dismissed claims that the inclusion of Form EC8A creates room for manipulation.
“The opposition’s claim that Form EC8A creates a loophole for manipulation is illogical and a needless tantrum by those who should know better,” he said.
Onanuga stressed that the 2026 Electoral Act does not prohibit real-time transmission of results.
“Any reasonable Nigerian understands that network glitches are a real issue. The 2026 Electoral Act does not prohibit real-time transmission; it simply stipulates that if transmission fails, the result recorded on Form EC8A shall be deemed valid,” he explained.
Clarifying the role of the INEC Results Viewing Portal (IReV), he added: “IReV is not a collation centre; it is a platform for uploading results for public viewing. The primary source for validating election results remains Form EC8.”
The presidential aide also addressed the controversy surrounding direct primaries and consensus candidacy provisions in the amended law.
“We find it perplexing why the opposition is crying over the inclusion of direct primaries and consensus voting, rather than the corrupt delegate system they prefer,” he said.
“The opposition should be grateful to the National Assembly for removing delegate-based primaries and restoring party ownership to its members. No aspirant should fear participation by party members in the primaries. This is how candidates are picked by party members in the United States, where we borrowed the presidential system of government.”
Onanuga rejected claims that the National Assembly ignored public input in passing the amendment.
“The NASS did not ignore the public. For two years, according to the Senate Majority Leader, the NASS listened to various stakeholders, technical experts, and millions of Nigerians who expressed their views on the risk of technical failure that could invalidate the entire election,” he said.
He also dismissed allegations that President Tinubu intends to turn Nigeria into a one-party state.
“Such cheap shots reveal their hollowness and lack of reason. Nigeria is a vibrant multiparty democracy, with more than a dozen registered parties, including ADC and NNPP,” he said.
“President Tinubu is a democrat—an opposition leader who, alongside like-minded individuals, led the charge to defeat the PDP in 2015.”
According to him, the newly signed Electoral Act is “a significant improvement over the repealed law,” closing loopholes that some opposition leaders allegedly sought to exploit.
“In summary, the opposition is merely crying foul because the rules of the game have been adjusted to prevent manipulation, such as result hacking, which they have allegedly perfected,” Onanuga stated.
He concluded by urging the opposition to focus inward.
“Rather than this constant lamentation and unwarranted outrage, ADC and NNPP leaders should spend more time on introspection and fix their own mess,” he said.
