Senate President Godswill Akpabio has said that Nigeria’s electoral process has recorded substantial progress since the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was voted out of power in 2015.
Speaking during Wednesday’s plenary session as the Senate debated a bill to repeal the Electoral Act 2022 and replace it with the proposed Electoral Bill 2025, Akpabio reflected on the country’s democratic evolution and the reforms implemented over the years.
The Senate President, who served as governor of Akwa Ibom State between 2007 and 2015 under the PDP, admitted that elections conducted during the party’s reign were fraught with irregularities and manipulation.
“You will agree with me that since the PDP left, elections have improved tremendously in this country,” Akpabio said. “I recall that in 2007, when I was elected governor, the then President, the late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, openly admitted that the election that brought him to power was flawed and riddled with inconsistencies.”
He noted that subsequent administrations have since taken deliberate steps to plug the loopholes that once enabled electoral fraud, adding that while imperfections remain, the system has become more transparent through the adoption of reforms and technology.
Akpabio also addressed the controversy surrounding the constitutional interpretation of “two-thirds of the states and the FCT” during the 2023 presidential election, describing the debate as needless.
“Some argued that winning the FCT alone was enough to become president,” he said. “That debate wasted valuable time until the Supreme Court clarified the matter.”
The Senate President emphasized that the proposed Electoral Bill 2025 is designed to consolidate democratic gains and further strengthen electoral integrity.
“We must continue to close existing gaps and build a stronger, more credible electoral system,” he concluded.
