The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has called on the National Assembly to urgently review its stance on electoral reforms, advocating the mandatory real-time transmission of results.

The conference stressed the need to restore dwindling citizens’ trust in the nation’s democracy.

​The Archbishop of Owerri and outgoing President of the CBCN, Most Rev. Lucius Ugorji, made the call at the opening session of the 2026 First Plenary Meeting at the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria on Sunday in Abuja.

​Speaking on the theme, “The Common Good and Leadership in Nigeria,” Mr Ugorji expressed concern over the steady decline in voter turnout.

He noted that voter turnout plummeted from 69 per cent in 2003 to a record low of 23 per cent in 2023.

​”This decline says a lot about citizens’ trust in the electoral process and calls into question the legitimacy of elected officials in a democratic dispensation with the mandate of an ever-decreasing minority,” he said.

​To arrest this “downward trend,” Mr Ugorji urged the federal lawmakers to ensure the Electoral Act provides for the mandatory transmission of results from the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) at polling units directly to the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal.

​He noted that such a move was essential to “prevent any human tampering with the expressed will of the electorate.”

​The cleric further took a swipe at the National Assembly for what he described as “inconsistent positions” regarding technology and transparency.

​He pointed out that while the legislature passed the 2025 Tax Act, which mandated digital filing and record-keeping, it appeared to “water down” the people’s will regarding digital transparency in elections.

​”The honourable members of the NASS should not allow themselves to be perceived as talking out of both sides of the mouth. The world is watching! Above all, God is also watching,” he noted.

​Beyond electoral matters, the CBCN President highlighted the “senseless massacres” and rising insecurity across the country, citing the recent killing of over 200 persons in Kwara State.

He also lamented the economic sabotage caused by illegal mining, which reportedly costs Nigeria approximately nine billion dollars annually.

​In his remarks, the Chairman of the occasion and former Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Dr Mike Omeri, challenged leaders to embrace “servant leadership” to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor.

​Similarly, the Emeritus Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, expressed optimism that the four-day meeting would proffer solutions to ensure Nigeria is “run well in justice and peace under one God.”

​The high point of the session was the announcement by Mr Ugorji that he would be stepping down as the President of the CBCN at the conclusion of the plenary, thanking his colleagues for their support during his tenure as “chief servant.”

​The event was attended by high-ranking government officials, including representatives of President Bola Tinubu and the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, alongside heads of various Christian denominations.

(NAN)