The Electoral Act clearly mandated the Presiding Officer to transmit the results to the IREV Portal.
It simply means that after the Presiding Officer has SUCCESSFULLY finished transmitting the results at the polling unit (In Front of Everybody), that the same transmitted results SHALL appear IMMEDIATELY on the IREV Portal — WITHOUT ANY DELAYS.
The Language of the Electoral Act in that section is very clear and unambiguous.
The Electoral Act did not give any possible excuses for delay, because there was not supposed to be any delays in the results appearing on the IREV Portal.
Therefore, If the Presiding Officer SUCCESSFULLY finished transmitting the results from the BVAS Machines, and IT DID NOT IMMEDIATELY APPEAR on the IREV Portal, then the agents of the candidates need to immediately note the name and id-number of that Polling Unit ==>> Because INEC must appear at the Tribunal/courts to explain why the Successfully Transmitted Results did not appear IMMEDIATELY on the IREV Portal, and such polling units must have to be cancelled.
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Meanwhile, the only clause for excuse which the Electoral Act envisaged was only in such cases WHERE THE TRANSMISSION DID NOT EVEN WORK AT ALL from the Polling Units.
This only excuse which the Electoral Act envisaged was “Communication Failure” — and I am going to explain more about that too.
What it means is that, if the Communication failure did not obstruct the transmission of results from such Polling-Units, then it should not also prevent the results from appearing immediately on the IREV Portal. But on the other hand, if the Presiding Officer Could Not SUCCESSFULLY complete the transmission of the results at the Polling Units, then the agents of the candidates need to also note the name of that Presiding Officer as well as the name and id-number of that Polling Unit ==>> Because INEC must appear at the Tribunal/courts to EXPLAIN THE CAUSE (OR THE CAUSES) of such communication failures at such Polling-Units which prevented the transmission of the results from being SUCCESSFUL at those Polling-Units AS MANDATED.
SUCH “COMMUNICATION FAILURES” CANNOT JUST BE ACCEPTED ON ASSUMPTIONS, OR JUST BECAUSE THEY SAID IT — THE “COMMUNICATION FAILURES” MUST BE ESTABLISHED AND PROVEN BY THE INEC TO HAVE ACTUALLY HAPPENED.
IF INEC SAYS THAT THERE WERE “COMMUNICATION FAILURES” IN SOME POLLING-UNITS, THEN THEY MUST CLEARLY ESTABLISH THAT THESE “COMMUNICATION FAILURES” REALLY OCCURRED (AND ALSO ESTABLISH WHAT CAUSED THEM).
If they didn’t establish reasons for these “Communication Failures” and their extents during the time the election was ongoing, then they must give deeper explanations during the election petition tribunals — or else it would be counted as a fault against them, and such polling units will have to be cancelled.
This also clearly means that the era where everybody at the Polling-Units would have to wait for A PARTICULAR “CONTROLLING OFFICER” AT THE WARD (Or RATECH) to first approve the transmitted results first before it can appear on the IREV Portal has gone.
It is now a thing of the past.
We are now in the new era where the results must appear IMMEDIATELY on the IREV Portal — while the Presiding Officer is still there present at the Polling Unit (without leaving the Polling Unit).
