The Independent National Electoral Commission’s plan to transmit election results electronically in 2023 is currently doubtful as the Federal Government has revealed that only 473 out of 774 local government areas in the country have Internet access.
By implication, 301 local government areas have no Internet access, thus transmitting election results in those areas may not be possible in 2023 even if the Electoral Act is amended.
According to the National Development Plan 2021 – 2025 launched last week by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), and obtained by The PUNCH, the government projects that 697 LGAs will have Internet access by 2023. The 2023 elections are expected to hold in February.
In a tabular illustration in the development plan, the government pegged 473 as the baseline for the number of LGAs with Internet connection. This implies that the government targets providing Internet access to an additional 224 LGAs with Internet access by 2023.
When contacted, experts, who spoke to our correspondents, explained what government must do to ensure electronic transfer of election results in the 301 LGAs.