Former Cross River State Governor, Donald Duke, has described Nigeria’s electoral system as a “monumental failure”, arguing that the country has the technology to make elections more transparent but lacks the political will to deploy it effectively.
Duke made the remarks while speaking on the 2027 general elections, expressing concern that the continued reliance on largely manual electoral processes has weakened public confidence in elections and contributed to voter apathy.
According to the former governor, technology capable of allowing voters to cast, verify and track their votes already exists, yet Nigeria continues to operate a system that he believes leaves room for manipulation.
Duke questioned why Nigerians can confidently conduct complex financial transactions electronically, including sending money to people in rural communities, but cannot have an electoral system where every vote can be independently verified.
He said the inability of citizens to trust that their votes will count has discouraged many Nigerians from participating in elections.
“The results you get from the polls often don’t reflect the views of the people,” Duke said, adding that the situation has created disenchantment among both voters and political contestants.
The former governor also criticised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), describing the commission as having failed in its responsibility to deliver an electoral process Nigerians can trust.
He recalled the postponement of the 2019 general election only hours before voting was scheduled to begin, saying the decision imposed huge financial costs on political parties and their agents.
Duke noted that with more than 180,000 polling units across the country and hundreds of thousands of polling agents involved in elections, sudden postponements can create enormous financial consequences for political parties.
He, however, acknowledged that election postponements were not limited to the current political administration, recalling that a similar decision was taken under a previous Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) government.
Beyond electoral technology, Duke also turned his attention to the 2027 presidential contest, warning opposition politicians that they would struggle to defeat an incumbent if they remained divided by individual ambitions.
He urged opposition leaders to work together and support whoever has the strongest prospect of providing effective leadership rather than allowing personal presidential ambitions to divide them.
Duke described the 2027 election as a defining moment for Nigeria, arguing that the country must decide whether to continue on its present path or pursue a different political direction.
“We can determine if we want to go forward or remain as we are,” he said.
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