The Independent National Electoral Commission (Independent National Electoral Commission) has detailed how screenshots containing the voter registration information of actor Emeka Ike were obtained and shared, saying the incident resulted from internal access misuse rather than any external breach.
Speaking in a telephone interview, INEC spokesperson Mohammed Haruna said investigations conducted alongside the police traced the origin of the screenshots to an electoral officer in the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC).
“An investigation by the commission and the police revealed that the screenshots were shared with Mr Olayinka by an electoral officer in the Abuja Municipal Area Council,” Haruna said.
The published screenshots were earlier shared by Lere Olayinka, spokesperson to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, sparking public concern over how voter data accessed through INEC’s Continuous Voter Registration system entered public circulation.
Haruna explained that the chain of access began within INEC offices, where an official viewed Emeka Ike’s details on the voter register after the actor visited the commission’s FCT office during a protest-related engagement.
According to him, the officer did not directly pass the data outside the institution but instead shared it with an AMAC electoral officer, who later disseminated it further.
“The INEC official accessed Mr Ike’s details on the voter register and shared them with the AMAC electoral officer. The official was said to have used her daughter’s phone to take the screenshot,” he said.
Security agencies interrogated multiple individuals during the investigation, including three INEC staff members and a relative of one of the officials. Phones belonging to an official and her daughter were also examined.
Haruna confirmed that the officer at the centre of the distribution is currently in police custody.
“The electoral officer was taken by the police… He is still with them. He has given his own side of the story, and it tallied with what the minister’s aide confirmed that they don’t even know each other,” he said.
He added that others questioned in connection with the incident have been released but are still required to report regularly to investigators.
The police also invited and questioned Olayinka, who had shared the screenshots publicly. He has not issued a public response to the allegations.
INEC stressed that the situation did not involve a cyberattack or breach of its systems, but rather the improper handling of data by authorised personnel.
The controversy began after Emeka Ike raised concerns about electoral processes during a visit to the INEC FCT office. Shortly after, screenshots showing his voter registration details appeared online, revealing changes in his polling unit registration.
INEC has maintained that its voter database remains secure, insisting the issue stemmed from internal misconduct rather than any compromise of its digital infrastructure.
