Posted by Samuel on Tue 17th Feb, 2026 - tori.ng
When Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house, put the motion to a voice vote, the “nays” were louder than the “ayes”, but he ruled that the nays had it.
Tuesday’s session in the House of Representatives descended into chaos as lawmakers clashed over a motion to reconsider the passage of the Electoral Act Amendment bill.
During plenary, Francis Waive, chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Rules and Business, moved a motion for the house to reverse its decision on the bill which was passed on December 23, 2025.
When Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house, put the motion to a voice vote, the “nays” were louder than the “ayes”, but he ruled that the nays had it.
The ruling triggered protests from lawmakers, who began hollering in objection. Abbas subsequently called for an executive session, but the proposal was also rejected.
Despite the resistance, the speaker moved the house into an executive session.
When the green chamber passed the electoral act in December, it adopted a proposal mandating the real-time transmission of election results to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s result viewing portal (IReV).