NASS Crafted Electoral Act To Favour APC — Baba Aye

What is your take on the controversies over the real-time e-transmission of election results? 

The controversies surrounding the transmission of elections say a lot about the nature of electoral politics in Nigeria. You can recall the court rulings in 2023 that the IReV could not be considered as the coalition centre. And electronic transmission of election results was deemed to be at the discretion of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). We all know who benefited most from the non-electronic transmission of results in 2023 and also stands to benefit by not enabling the transmission as a compulsory element of the 2026 Electoral Act. It is the ruling party. So, not surprisingly, opposition parties from the same ruling class of bosses joined the chorus of calls to make e-transmission compulsory. But, their point of departure is not the same as that of civil society organisations and the only party which represents a revolutionary alternative in the country is the African Action Congress (AAC). The position of AAC and social movements like the trade unions was for things to be done the right way. But, for the other bosses’ parties, it was simply about not being schemed out of their quest for power. If they were the ones in control of the National Assembly with the kind of majority that the APC has there now, they would most likely do the same thing. They represent the same ideas, political interests and manipulative methods of elite electoral politics in Nigeria. 

Why do you think some politicians are afraid of real time e-transmission of election results? 

It is not surprising that the party that is afraid of real time transmission of election results is the ruling party. We remember how election results were mutilated almost beyond being legible in 2023 and a couple of other off-cycle elections since then. The party in power tends to bring state power to bear to rig more than other parties of the bosses. This includes their use of both repressive and administrative apparatus of state. They also use thugs. And there is also the use of money for vote-buying and compromising of electoral officers. The ruling APC is thus afraid of e-transmission because it would curtail the extent to which figures of results could be changed at will. Although I must say that even if the transmission method is addressed, they will find ways around how to win by both hook and crook. Making the transmission mandatory would be a step forward, but it is not enough. The system as a whole is rigged. It is rigged first and foremost in favour of the ruling class as a whole, and then in a secondary, but also quite important manner to the benefit of the party in power. 

What other aspects of the Electoral Act do you think should be amended in the interest of the nation’s democracy? 

I am not sure that we can talk about an amendment of the Electoral Act now. Its implementation has commenced with the fixing of dates for primaries and elections. You can also see how smart the ruling party has been in all this. While opposition parties, including those of the ruling class-like focussed their attention on the e-transmission wahala, APC managed to ensure that it would be impossible for people that lost at primaries in any of the parties to cross to another, as has been one of the tactics that different sections of the ruling class use. This has been done with the deadline for submission of electronic details of members of all parties. That itself is also another huddle for many parties, because without submitting that, they are not allowed to organise their primaries and present candidates for elections. So, the Electoral Act has been systematically crafted to favour the All Progressive Congress (APC), using its majority in the two chambers of the national legislation legislature. Some of the other parties are talking of boycotting. Well, we have to wait to see if they will seriously go ahead with that, and to what extent that would impact on the drama of the absurd that the APC is trying to shape the 2027 elections to be, so that it is a settled case in its favour, even before the kick-off whistle is blown. 

You are known to be a supporter of the AAC. As an insider, what is the party doing to ensure that it wins elections in 2027, both at the state and federal levels? 

The African National Congress is organising intensively in ways that will ensure we play an even more significant role in the 2027 elections. It is significant that at the moment, AAC has councillors in a few states in the North East and North West. We are poised for the 2027 elections. I’m not talking of in the hundreds or just a few thousands. These are bearers of politics, bearers of mobilisation and organising as the only revolutionary party on the ballots. Our politics on the street and at the ballots are closely intertwined. We do appreciate that we cannot change the system solely at the polls, but elections are very important. And as I’ve pointed out, we do have the grassroots AAC activists, and we’ll build on this in the 2027 elections at the state and federal levels. 

Is the AAC considering going into alliance or a coalition with some Leftist parties and organisations to overwhelm the ruling class in 2027 to ensure good governance in Nigeria? 

I must start by pointing out that this is the first time that you are having a revolutionary party running candidates in three electoral circles consecutively, in Nigeria. This is very significant. It speaks a lot about the staying power of AAC within an electoral context that is designed to stifle and smash left parties. The party is the only left party on the ballots. In 2023, we had an alliance with the revolutionary faction of the People’s Redemption Party (PRP). This year, we reached out to a broad array of left parties and groups, in our ‘Fall in Love with Freedom’ programme on February 14. The Movement Of the People (MOP) led by Seun Kuti, among other groups, joined and welcomed collaboration with the party. It is, however, important to stress that our aim goes beyond the good governance discourse. We want to smash this exploitative system and build a new better society, by any means necessary, including electoral contestation. 

What is the AAC’s agenda for Nigerians as they get ready for the 2027 elections? 

For us as the AAC, our agenda for the Nigerian people is straightforward. We want the liberation of the vast majority who are exploited by the bosses and who are repressed by the state. Nigeria has so much wealth. It is a very rich country. But, the vast majority of the people are exceedingly poor. This is because a few handful of people, 0.01%, have so much wealth. As Oxfam pointed out some time back, the wealth of the five richest Nigerians is enough to wipe out poverty in the country. It’s more than the wealth of like half of the population of the country. This has to change. We need to take action to make that change. So, one, we want to build an economy that works for the many, not the few. An economy that puts the people and the planet first, because it’s also crucial for us to put in place measures to avoid an economic regime of extractivist productivity that deepens the climate crisis. Climate change is not just something happening in other places. We see this in the floods that claim hundreds of lives every year in the country. We see this in the deforestation that makes Nigeria the worst case of deforestation in the world. We see this in how even the weather is changing. So, we are an eco-socialist party. We’re concerned with ensuring the protection of the environment. We’re concerned with ensuring that the economy works for the many, to put in place social protection measures, universal social protection measures. It’s very possible for the right to health to be fully realised in Nigeria, where everybody can have access to quality healthcare services. 

Quality education must also be accessible for every child and adult. But, our public schools are underfunded. AAC will prioritise putting resources in these schools and involving staff, students and communities in addressing the problems together. We’re going to ensure the retooling of teachers; we’re going to ensure that education is made the right it should be, and not a privilege in truth and in deed. An educated population is an asset in so many ways to the country. These are some of the things we’re going to push forward. Our social policy as AAC will also prioritise women’s liberation and gender equity. Nigeria still has failed to implement Article 14 of the Maputo Protocol, which we are signatory to. These are things that AAC will put forward in ensuring women’s liberation in Nigeria. We’re going to stand for democratisation in the fullest sense of the word in every facet of our social life. For example, you still see in Nigeria now, even to elect Vice Chancellors, Provost, so many people in those communities are not involved. It’s something everybody on campuses will have a right to be part and parcel of, in determining the emergence of who will be in charge of running their schools. We’re talking about democratisation in the communities, not just about some all-powerful local government chairmen and councillors. There will be popular power structures with regular town hall meetings for accountability of those elected to lead the local government councils. We have a position on insecurity, which among other things, entails putting in place measures to address the material poverty and ideological backwardness that help feed it in different ways in different parts of the country. We’re going to address this by, among other things, ensuring that the communities themselves are the heart of the formulation and implementation of measures to safeguard lives and property. We’re a pan-Africanist party. We stand for and we will continue to fight for the liberation of Africa in the 21st Century against the neo-liberal dictates of the international financial institutions, global capital and the local ruling class who benefit from the exploitation of the vast majority of Africa and our rich lands, as partners of imperialist interests. These are some of the key elements of our agenda for Nigerians in the 2027 elections. 

First published in the Sunday Independent, Vol.20 No. 2102 (March 15, 2026) p.19