Forensic Review Reveals Remarkable Compliance with Electoral Rules and Exposes Possible Corrupt Practices That Significantly Altered Results
The Athena Centre’s forensic review of the 2023 off-cycle gubernatorial elections in Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi states reveals the successes and challenges of Nigeria’s evolving electoral process. While the introduction of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) significantly improved transparency and voter accreditation accuracy, widespread non-compliance and corrupt practices were still prevalent. The review highlights that a substantial portion of the polling units in these states adhered to INEC guidelines—77.5% in Kogi, 73% in Imo, and 84.8% in Bayelsa—demonstrating the potential of these technological advancements to enhance electoral integrity.
However, the analysis also uncovers troubling patterns of non-compliance, with the All Progressives Congress (APC) emerging as the primary beneficiary of manipulated results in non-compliant polling units. Presiding and Collation Officers played disturbing roles in violating electoral rules in non-compliant polling units and collation centres.
Across the three states, significant votes were cast in polling units that failed to comply with INEC electoral guidelines—22.5% in Kogi, 23.1% in Imo, and 15% in Bayelsa—substantially altering the final election outcomes.
This review highlights the critical need for urgent reforms to improve compliance, accountability, and the integrity of Nigeria’s electoral process before the elections in Edo and Ondo States.
