By Obinna Uballa
Technical difficulties marred Saturday’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections as the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) failed to transmit results in real time, while the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Results Viewing (IReV) portal reportedly did not reflect uploaded data from several polling units.
The New Diplomat had reported that Yiaga Africa, a non profit civic hub, in its preliminary report on the election, flagged vote-buying, late arrival of voting materials, among others.
Observers and party agents at polling units across Karu and surrounding areas raised concerns over the BVAS failures, which forced polling officers – comprising NYSC members, INEC ad hoc staff, and security personnel – to conclude voting manually and rush results to collation centres.
Polling officials at PU012 and PU013, located at Karu CBN Junction, told election monitors that attempts to upload results on the IReV portal were unsuccessful throughout the day. One official explained, “We repeatedly tried uploading the results on the IReV portal, but it kept returning unsuccessfully. We also consulted the manual provided by INEC, but it was of no help. The manual instructed us to use the Chrome app in the BVAS, but the device has no such app. Clearly, it was not properly configured.”
According to the officials, BVAS devices were delivered to polling units just minutes before the election began, contributing to the malfunction. They said INEC instructed them to take the devices to collation centres for uploading, a task reserved for senior officials. Party agents insisted on real-time transmission to safeguard credibility, prompting polling officials to invite them to the collation centre to witness the process.
Kudirat, the presiding officer at PU012, confirmed that sorting and counting of ballots were conducted in full view of party agents, who signed result sheets and received duplicated copies. “We encouraged agents to accompany us to the collation centre so they could verify the upload and attest to the transparency of the process,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Obidient Movement raised alarms over alleged IReV malfunctions. In a statement titled “Alert from the Obidient Movement Headquarters,” National Coordinator Dr. Yunusa Tanko warned that results reportedly uploaded from polling units were not reflecting on the portal.
“Information reaching us indicates that the IReV server is active but not displaying results from several polling units,” Tanko said. “All Nigerians are encouraged to remain vigilant and, if necessary, proceed peacefully to the Area 10 INEC office and Karu to observe the collation process. Ensure you have accurate results from your polling units for verification. Let us remain calm, law-abiding, and committed to protecting the integrity of the elections.”
The elections, covering chairmanship and councillorship positions across AMAC, Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje, Abaji, and Kwali, are regarded as a key test of grassroots political strength in the FCT.
As of press time, INEC had not issued an official statement on the BVAS transmission failures or the alleged IReV glitches.
Nonetheless, officials assured stakeholders that the manual collation and documentation of results were properly conducted and that electoral outcomes would remain secure.
