ANALYSIS OF THE LEGAL IMPLICATIONS OF THE USE OF INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY (ICT) IN THE 2023 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Technology has continued to play significant roles in election management globally. This paper critically examined the legal consequences of deploying Information and Communication Technology (ICT), specifically the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), in Nigeria’s 2023 Presidential Election. Adopting a doctrinal methodology, it examined the legal framework and judicial pronouncements in post-2023 election petitions. The paper found that while the Electoral Act 2022 provided strong statutory backing for technological deployment, the judiciary adopted a strictly positivist interpretation that preserved the primacy of manual Form EC8A over electronic records and refused to treat real-time uploading to IReV as a mandatory condition precedent to the validity of results. These outcomes exposed a critical disjuncture between legislative intent, institutional practice, and judicial interpretation, thereby diluting the transformative potential of ICT reforms. The paper further underscored cybersecurity and biometric data protection risks that remain inadequately addressed. Recommendations include the urgent amendment of the Electoral Act 2022 to insert an explicit “supremacy clause” making electronically transmitted results prevail over physical result sheets, the institutionalisation of independent technical audits, and the modernisation of judicial practice directions on electronic evidence.