The APGA chairman defended the law, saying critics misunderstood its intent

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Sly Ezeokenwa, has defended the provisions of the 2022 Elections Act, arguing that many critics of the law and the conduct of elections misunderstand how the electoral process works.

Speaking in an interaction with the media on Thursday in Lagos, Ezeokenwa said the ongoing debate around election procedures—especially the electronic transmission of election results—often ignores what is actually provided for in the law.

He emphasized that legislative regulations such as the Election Law are the product of a collective democratic process and should not be linked to any political party.

“If the National Assembly passes a law, you don’t have to say ‘I oppose it’ or ‘I support it.’

“As we always say in democracy, the minority has the right to express its opinion, but the majority has the right to make their choice.

“This is not the action of APC members in the National Assembly; this is the action of the National Assembly.

“Once the president approves it, it becomes a law that is binding on all citizens,” Ezeokenwa said.

The APGA Chair also addressed the controversy surrounding the electronic transmission of election results in the 2023 presidential election, saying that public discourse on this issue is often driven by misunderstandings.

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“Most of the people who talk about delivering election results know little or nothing about the election process,” he said.

He explained that the electronic transmission system introduced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was designed primarily to promote transparency and public confidence in the elections.

“The presiding officer scanned the result sheet and uploaded it to the INEC Results Viewing Portal.

“The point is for Nigerians everywhere to be able to log into the portal and see the results in real-time,” he said.

According to him, the Election Law still recognizes the physical examination of election results as a legally binding procedure, and emphasized that the images uploaded on the viewing portal are intended primarily for transparency and not an official examination.

“People confuse transmitting results to the portal with checking; they are two different things.

“Electronic transmission means scanning the results and sending them to the display portal.

“The law recognizes that the results are physically handed over by the chairman to the examination officer,” he said.

Ezeokenwa stated that disputes regarding election results must be supported by documentary evidence, particularly alternative result sheets from polling units.

“If you want to determine whether an election was rigged, the key document is the original, legalized copy of the election results.

“To date, no one has produced an alternative result sheet; the only thing I have heard is that INEC violated its guidelines.

“If they violate their guidelines, do you bring alternative results to show that the stated results are different?” he asked.

Apart from the legal debate, the APGA leader also used the opportunity to outline the party’s philosophy on governance and political participation.

According to him, APGA believes politics should not be a lifelong job and encourages its members to remain involved professionally outside of government.

“At APGA, we are trying to develop a political model that recognizes that politics is not a business.

“People have to build careers, and if you are a party official, you have to maintain meaningful professional engagement.

“If you don’t engage productively, it will lead to bad things like trading nomination platforms for money.

“Even as national chairman, I still go to court because election petitions are part of my professional practice,” Ezeokenwa said.

He added that increasing public understanding of the electoral law and the electoral process will be critical in strengthening Nigeria’s democracy ahead of future elections, including the 2027 presidential election.