ADC raises alarm over ‘statistically impossible’ voter registrations in South-West
The African Democratic Congress, ADC, has expressed alarm over what it described as “statistically implausible” figures in the first batch of Permanent Voter Card, PVC, pre-registration data released by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
According to INEC’s figures, Osun State alone recorded 393,269 pre-registrations in one week. The ADC noted that this was higher than the 275,815 new voters added in the state between 2019 and 2023, a period of four years.
ADC in a statement issued on Thursday by
Bolaji Abdullahi, National Publicity Secretary, argued that the figures defied logic, pointing out that Osun, at the peak of political mobilisation in 2022, recorded 823,124 votes in the governorship election.
The party questioned how nearly 20 percent of all eligible adults in the state have now rushed to register within seven days.
“The anomalies become even more glaring when viewed in the context of the overall registration report,” ADC said.
According to the party, INEC data shows that the South West accounted for 848,359 pre-registrations—representing 67 percent of the national total—while the entire South East recorded just 1,998.
ADC further noted that Osun, Lagos, and Ogun states combined made up 54.2 percent of all pre-registrations in Nigeria, while five states—Ebonyi, Imo, Enugu, Abia, and Adamawa—barely recorded 4,153, or 0.2 percent.
“These fantastic figures suggest either another technical ‘glitch’ in INEC’s digital registration system or a more troubling possibility of deliberate manipulation of data,” the ADC warned, insisting that the integrity of the 2027 general elections could be at risk if the voter register is compromised.
The party called on INEC to immediately conduct and publish a forensic audit of the first-week pre-registration data, including a breakdown of physical and online registrations, as well as server logs, bandwidth distribution, and regional access reports for the registration portal.
It also urged opposition political parties, civil society groups, fact-checkers, and election observers to interrogate the data and press INEC for accountability.
The ADC further invited the international community, including the United Nations, African Union, ECOWAS, and Nigeria’s democratic allies, to take early interest in the anomalies.
It warned that unresolved flaws in the voter register could have grave implications for national stability.
“The credibility of our democracy cannot be left to chance. Silence in the face of these anomalies would amount to complicity,” Abdullahi said.
ADC raises alarm over ‘statistically impossible’ voter registrations in South-West
