INEC Defends Osun’s Lead in Voter Registration, Replies ADC’s Claims

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has dismissed allegations by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) that its latest voter registration figures are “statistically implausible.”

Earlier this week, INEC reported that over 1.3 million Nigerians completed their online voter pre-registration within the first week of the exercise, with Osun State accounting for 393,269 of those entries.

In response, ADC spokesperson Bolaji Abdullahi questioned the credibility of the figures, arguing that Osun’s numbers were inconsistent with past trends and demographic realities.

But in a statement on Thursday, Rotimi Oyekanmi, Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu, insisted that Osun’s lead is neither unusual nor unexpected.

“With regard to Osun State, the pattern is similar to what occurred in June 2021 when the commission launched the online pre-registration for the first time,” Oyekanmi explained.

According to INEC, Osun also led registrations in 2021, when 59,331 accounts were created nationwide in the first 24 hours, and 456,909 active accounts were recorded by the second week — 154,893 of them from Osun. By April 2022, Osun’s registrations had surpassed 708,000, maintaining a consistent lead throughout the exercise.

The commission stressed that its registration process remains transparent, with safeguards such as the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) to detect duplicate entries, as well as periodic publication of preliminary voter registers for public scrutiny.

INEC urged political parties and citizens to rely on verified records rather than speculation.

“Our duty as a Commission is to ensure that only real persons, who meet the criteria in the Constitution and the Electoral Act, are allowed to register,” the statement read.

“We appeal to all well-meaning citizens to be circumspect in going public with information based on conjecture when they can access authentic, verifiable data from our official records.”

The commission added that it will continue to provide updates on both online and in-person registration as the exercise progresses.