The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said it cannot guarantee total safety of data if a provision seeking to empower the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to transmit results electronically is included in the Electoral bill that has since become a controversial subject among Nigerian lawmakers and citizens.
According to the Nigeria’s regulatory authority for the telecommunications industry, no system is completely free from hackers, adding that elections data could be tampered with.
The New Diplomat had reported that the Electoral Act Amendment Bill took the centre stage in the red chambers on Thursday as lawmakers engaged in heated argument over the section making provision for the electronic transmission of results, leading to a rowdy session.
However, following the heated debates, the House resolved to conduct an individual vote, of which 52 Senators voted against the inclusion of the clause while 28 sentors voted for the inclusion of the clause.
Following the results, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan ruled in favour of the 52 Senators by rephrasing the section to give power to the NCC and the National Assembly to determine the usage of the electronic means for the transmission of results.
On Friday, the Executive Commissioner of the NCC, Mr. Adeleke Adewolu who appeared before the House of Representatives raised concerns over the transmission of results electronically, stating that no system can guarantee a 100 percent shield from hacking.
The NCC boss also stated that elections results can only be transmitted by a 3G network, noting that 50 percent of the country has 3G coverage.
He, however, explained that for areas without such coverage, poll results can be recorded and thereafter uploaded in places where there is a network.
But Adeleke admitted that this cannot be compared with the real-time upload.
