As much as diaspora voting is desirable, it is not yet ripe for Nigeria, says Senator Victor Umeh, representing Anambra Central Senatorial District, as he ruled out the possibility of Nigerians living abroad participating in the 2027 general elections.
Speaking with newsmen on Monday in Abuja, Umeh explained that the bill seeking to enable diaspora voting was rejected by the Constitution Review Committee, noting that Nigeria currently lacks the technological and institutional capacity to conduct credible elections beyond its borders.
According to the former chairman of the Senate Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organizations, while the demand for diaspora voting has been a recurring call from Nigerians abroad, the country’s electoral framework is not yet strong enough to guarantee transparency and confidence in results transmitted electronically from different parts of the world.
“We have not attained the level of transparency in our conduct of elections that would give everyone confidence that results transmitted from Europe, America, or Africa would remain credible,” Umeh said.
“Until we can guarantee that, it would be unwise to adopt diaspora voting.”He warned that cyber insecurity, data breaches, and technological manipulation could undermine the integrity of election results if diaspora voting were introduced prematurely.Umeh
therefore advised Nigerians abroad who wish to vote to travel home during elections, stressing that safeguarding the credibility of Nigeria’s democracy must remain a top priority
