Politics

How INEC Deployed Device To Switch Results In Tinubu’s Favour — Atiku

Published

3 years ago

March 22, 2023

The andidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar, has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, of installing a third-party device to intercept and switch results of the presidential election that held on February 25, in favour of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, and its candidate, Bola Tinubu.

Atiku made the claim in a 66-paged petition he lodged before the Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC, sitting at the Court of Appeal in Abuja.

He further alleged that INEC had, prior to the election, redeployed its in-house ICT expert, Mr. Chidi Nwafor, and replaced him with an IT consultant that helped it to install the third-party mechanism.

According to the Atiku, the said IT consultant, Mr Suleiman Farouk, ensured that the device intermediated between the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the IRev Portal, known as Device Management System (DMS).

He told the court that the DMS was the software that allowed INEC’s IT security consultant, Mr Farouk, to remotely control, monitor and filter data that was transmitted from the BVAS devices to the electronic collation system and the IRev platform.

“The 1st respondent (INEC) engaged an appointee of the 2nd respondent to man and oversee the sensitive ICT Department of the 1st respondent for the purpose of the election.

“The petitioners contend, and shall lead evidence to show, that contrary to the original design of the BVAS machine to upload data directly to the electronic collation system and the IReV portal, the 1st respondent contrived and installed an intervening third-party device (Device Management System) which, in its ordinary usage, is meant to secure and administer the 1st respondent’s technological ecosystem for the elections but, as it relates to the presidential election, was used to intercept the results, quarantine and warehouse same, and filter them before releasing same to the IReV Portal.

“The 1st respondent used the said Device Management System to manipulate the election results in favour of the 2nd and 3rd respondents.

“The petitioners state, and shall lead expert evidence to show, the critical components of the 1st respondent’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT), including but not limited to the BVAS, which is an android device manufactured by Emperor Technologies China and supplied to the 1st Respondent by Activate Nigeria Limited.

“The Voter Accreditation System (VAS) which is the software that is used on the BVAS was previously designed and configured in-house and installed on the BVAS by the ICT Team of the 1st respondent headed by Mr Chidi Nwafor.

“The VAS was subsequently handed over to Emperor Technology China prior to the presidential rlection and they then preconfigured and installed the software on the BVAS before supplying the devices to the 1st respondent through Activate Nigeria Limited.

“As it relates to the IReV, the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) is a web-based data entry and aggregation portal designed also by Chidi Nwafor’s team and is hosted on Amazon Web Service (AWS).

“The server system for the device and the portal are hosted on Amazon Web Service (AWS) URL:dashboard.ivasportal.com/dash”, he added.

Besides, Atiku, who came second in the presidential election, in the petition he filed alongside his party, PDP, maintained that INEC, having set the parameters of the poll, “did not ensure compliance with the electronic transmission of accreditation data and results in the Election to create opportunity for manipulation of figures to the advantage of the 2nd and 3rd Respondents”.

The petitioners said they would during the hearing of the petition, lead evidence to show that there were no technical glitches that prevented the upload and transmission of the polling units results and the accreditation data of the presidential election to the electronic collation system and the IReV portal.

They alleged that what happened was “the non-adherence to the system through a command and control element activated by a pre-programmed design to limit user-privileges of the front-end users of the BVAS machines at the polling units with respect to presidential election results while releasing user privileges in respect of the National Assembly election windows, by selectively withholding correct passwords and/or issuing wrong passwords through the use of the Device Management System equipment aforesaid.”

Arguing that there was no failure of the server as claimed by INEC, the petitioners said they would adduce evidence to show that the “server” being cloud-based, in the event of any unlikely challenge, Amazon Web Service would have seamlessly switched to another server without hitch, being autoscaling groups with multiple network reception and offline upload options.

“The Petitioners contend that the technology system deployed by the 1st Respondent underwent Quality Assurance Tests (“QAT”) before acquisition and deployment.

“The 1st Respondent is hereby given the notice to produce the QAT Report that was prepared by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) as well as the Report of Vulnerability Assessment & Penetration Testing (VAPT) by Consultant Suleiman Farouk of Sulfman Consulting Limited and all other subsequent and related reports on the system.

“The Petitioners contend that the so-called “glitch” was a bypass to tilt and switch the results of the Presidential Election in favour of the 2nd and 3rd Respondents”, they added.

More so, they said among people they would subpoena to appear before the court to testify, would include the PWC, expert witnesses in respect of the electronic collation system and the IReV portal, as well as Kaspersky Endpoint Security (of Thornhill Office Park, Bekker Road, Midrand, South Africa), which provided the system security for the BVAS and e-transmission system deployed by INEC.

As well as Globacom Nigeria Limited, the internet provider for the system deployed by INEC, “which internet was disconnected from the BVAS machines before transmission”.

“The Petitioners shall also call evidence of statisticians, forensic examiners, fingerprint and ICT experts at the hearing of the Petition to establish that the figures/scores awarded the 2nd Respondent were not the product of valid votes actually cast but were mere allocation by the 1st Respondent, and the summation of the result declared is inconsistent with and cannot be reconciled with the number of duly accredited voters.

“The Petitioners plead and shall rely on BVAS reports, the results sheets of the polling units, wards, local governments, States and the national manually collated results and electronic video recordings of several acts of infractions of the electoral process by the Respondents”, they added.

Atiku and his party argued that as of March 1 when Tinubu was declared the winner of the election, the entire results and accreditation data from polling units had not been transmitted and uploaded by INEC.

“The Petitioners contend that the 1st Respondent is in clear breach of the provisions of the law under Sections 60 and 64(4) and (5) of the Electoral Act 2022 by failing to use the BVAS to transmit the Election results at the polling units and the accreditation data therefrom to the electronic collation system and the IRev Portal. Despite the failure to so transmit and several complaints for review, the 1st Respondent’s Chairman refused all entreaties and applications for the suspension of the collation exercise and a review of the complaints before declaring a winner of the Election and repeatedly off-handedly dared the Petitioners to go to Court.

“The Petitioners contend that contrary to the provisions of the 1st Respondent’s Regulations and Manual which stipulate the transmission of both accreditation data and the polling units results from the BVAS directly and real-time to the electronic collation system and the IReV portal, the 1st Respondent introduced a device manager called Collation Support and Results Verification System (CSRVS), with which the results from the polling units were quarantined prior to transmission to the IReV portal, leaving room for the 1st Respondent to upload wrong results”.

On another leg of the petition, Atiku argued that Tinubu did not secure at least one-quarter of the votes cast in the presidential election in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

He stressed that out of the total votes of 478,652 cast in the FCT, Abuja, Tinubu, was ascribed only 90,902 (18.99%) of the votes.

“The Petitioners shall contend that to be declared duly elected, a candidate, in addition to obtaining not less than a quarter (25%) of the votes cast in at least two-thirds of all the States, must also receive at least one quarter (25%) of the votes cast in the FCT, Abuja, this being an additional requirement introduced by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), the said Constitution having clearly distinguished the FCT, Abuja as a separate entity by the specific and express mention”.

“The Petitioners further aver that all over Nigeria there were manifest cases of over-voting. The total of the affected polling units in the various States are set out in the Statisticians Report pleaded and relied upon by the Petitioners”.

They are among other things, praying the court to hold that Tinubu was not duly elected by a majority of lawful votes cast in the election and therefore the declaration and his return by INEC as the winner of the Presidential Election was unlawful, wrongful, unconstitutional, undue, null and void and of no effect whatsoever.

“That it may be determined that the 2nd Respondent was at the time of the election not qualified to contest the said election”.

In the alternative, the petitioners want the court to declare that Atiku, having scored the majority of lawful votes cast at the presidential election, be returned as the winner of the said election and be sworn in as the duly elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Or, to issue an order, directing the INEC to conduct a second election (run-off) between the 1st Petitioner (Atiku) and the 2nd Respondent (Tinubu)

In their further alternative prayer, the petitioners, urged the court to nullify the presidential election and order a re-run.
VANGUARD

Politics

Probe Natasha’s Allegations Against Akpabio, Afenifere Urges FG

Published

1 day ago

September 26, 2025

Editor

The pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, has urged the Federal Government to investigate sexual harassment allegations levelled by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

The call followed the Senate’s decision to lift Akpoti-Uduaghan’s six-month suspension.

This, Afenifere said should not overshadow the need to establish the truth of her claims.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Afenifere’s National Organising Secretary, Kole Omololu, said the senator’s recall reflected commitment to the rule of law.

“We commend the Senate President, His Excellency Senator Godswill Akpabio, and the Senate leadership for taking a decision that further reinforces the country’s rule of law,” Omololu said.

The group, however, insisted that Akpoti-Uduaghan’s allegations must not be ignored.

“For over six months, where are the facts and evidence of her grave allegations?” Afenifere asked.

It called on the “Nigeria Police, Department of State Services (DSS) and National Intelligence Agency (NIA) to carry out a full investigation into the matter.”

Afenifere also recalled Akpoti-Uduaghan’s past false sexual harassment claims against former presidential aide Reno Omokri, which ended in an out-of-court settlement.

“Does this not suggest that, without proof, her allegations against Akpabio are suspicious?” Omololu asked.

The group further criticised Akpoti-Uduaghan for taking her claims to international media, including BBC, CNN, Sky News and Deutsche Welle, saying the move portrayed Nigeria negatively abroad.

It also queried her participation in a session of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in New York.

“If Natasha truly participated in the IPU meeting without due nomination, then it simply revealed her compromise or manipulation of our public institutions for pecuniary ends,” the group said.

In March 2025, Natasha was suspended for six months after a row in plenary and her petition accusing Senate President Godswill Akpabio of sexual harassment.

She claimed the incident happened in December 2023, but the Senate’s Ethics Committee dismissed her petition on procedural grounds. Despite a court order halting disciplinary action, the Senate went ahead with her suspension, which also froze her pay and barred her from official duties.

Akpoti-Uduaghan challenged the suspension in court, insisting it was tied to her allegations. While the Senate said it acted over misconduct, the case attracted global attention after she granted interviews to international media. The matter remains unsettled, with Afenifere now urging federal authorities to investigate her claims.

Meanwhile, Natasha formally resumed her duties at the National Assembly on October 7, 2025, after her six-month suspension ended – and immediately claimed that Akpabio is a dictator.

And almost immediately, Akpabio’s media aide Kenny Okolugbo debunked the claim.

Politics

2027: Drama As Atiku Disowns Media Consultant Over Statement On Yoruba

Published

2 days ago

September 25, 2025

Editor

The 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party and a former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has denied any association with a media consultant named Kola Johnson.

This is as he also rejected statements released by the media consultant on Wednesday that he would protect Yoruba interests if elected as president in 2027.

Atiku, in a statement issued on Thursday by his Media Adviser, Paul Ibe, alleged that “faceless mercenaries” are behind the false press statement just to discredit him.

He also dismissed the claim as “false and offensive,” describing it as part of a calculated propaganda project to ridicule him in the media.

The statement specifically mentioned one Kola Johnson, described as a “self-styled media consultant,” who allegedly released a publication claiming that an Atiku administration would be dominated by a single ethnic group.

The statement read, “Our findings point directly to the Presidency, which, in its desperation to smear opposition leaders, has resorted to hiring faceless mercenaries to fabricate fake stories and circulate unauthorised statements on Atiku.

“Particularly offensive is the false claim attributed to this individual that an Atiku administration would be dominated by a single ethnic group. This disinformation is part of a calculated propaganda project designed to ridicule Atiku in the media.

“Let it be clear: Atiku Abubakar has never engaged one Kola Johnson as a media consultant, aide, or associate. Any statement issued in that name is fake and should be disregarded. We urge media houses that have published such falsehoods to immediately retract them.”

The statement also clarified that authentic information on the former Vice President is only released through his Media Adviser or Special Assistant on Public Communications.

“Editors and media gatekeepers are strongly advised to verify with the Atiku Media Office before publication,” the statement added.

It was widely reported on Wednesday that Atiku has assured people of the South-West geo-political zone that their interest would remain central to his policy direction if elected President in 2027, noting that his long-standing marital and cultural ties to the region make him family.

The report quoted a statement by one, Kola Johnson, as saying that the former Vice President spoke during an engagement with select stakeholders.

The report said Atiku described the people of the South-West as one of the finest species of the human race, noting that his marriage to a Yoruba woman in the 1970s forged a permanent bond between him and the Yorubas.

He dismissed fears of Hausa/Fulani domination under his leadership as unfounded, insisting that the Yoruba were his larger extended family and in-laws.

The former vice president added that his Yoruba connections extend beyond family, as some of his closest friends and associates were from the region.

“In case you don’t know or have forgotten, I was married to my first wife, Titi, a Yoruba woman, in the 70s, and we have four Yoruba children together. She is now over 75 years old, and we are still together.

“Besides, the Yoruba are so sophisticated and highly educated that you can only toy with them at your peril,” Atiku stated. “My Ijesha-born Yoruba wife is more than a wife to me. Aptly put, she is my Jewel of Inestimable value and anybody who knows about my family, even from a distance, can easily tell you this.”

Politics

PHOTOS: Atiku, El-Rufai, Tambuwal, Others Attends ADC Meeting In Abuja

Published

2 days ago

September 25, 2025

Editor

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar on Thursday attended a meeting of the African Democratic Congress coalition leaders in Abuja, alongside several prominent politicians.

Among those present were former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir el-Rufai; ex-Minister of Digital Economy, Isa Pantami; ADC National Chairman and former Senate President, David Mark; former Kwara State governor, Abdulfatai Ahmed; and ex-Sokoto governor, Aminu Tambuwal.

In a post on his official X handle, Atiku described the gathering as part of efforts to resist what he called entrenched interests holding back Nigeria’s development.

He stated that the meeting was also against the oligarchs who promote poverty and insecurity in the country.

He wrote, “I am currently at the stakeholders meeting of the Coalition African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Abuja. It’s a meeting of the Nigerian people against the oligarchs who promote poverty and insecurity in the land.”

The ADC coalition was adopted in July by opposition politicians as the platform to challenge for power in the 2027 general elections.

The African Democratic Congress, originally formed in 2005 as the Alliance for Democratic Change, later changed its name to ADC and was officially registered by the Independent National Electoral Commission in 2011. The party positioned itself as a centrist alternative to the dominant Peoples Democratic Party and All Progressives Congress.

Over the years, it has attracted defectors and reform-minded politicians seeking to build a third force in Nigeria’s political landscape.

Other members of the coalition include former PDP National Chairman, Uche Secondus; 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi; ex-Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi; former Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola; former House of Representatives Speaker, Emeka Ihedioha; ex-Kogi Central Senator, Dino Melaye, and a former National Chairman of the APC, Odigie Oyegun.